


Genevieve Labrador

by Rosie2009



Series: Descendants Fanfiction [40]
Category: Descendants (Disney Movies), Disney - All Media Types
Genre: Evie & Jay & Mal & Carlos de Vil as Found Family, Evie & Uma Friendship (Disney), F/M, Gen, Mal & Uma Friendship (Disney), Protective Uma (Disney)
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-11-30
Updated: 2020-01-11
Packaged: 2021-02-25 20:41:28
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 14
Words: 34,409
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21611659
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Rosie2009/pseuds/Rosie2009
Summary: Evie and Mal are looking for Mal's spell book that Celia has stolen again when a certain mishap occurs... A hairy mishap that Mal and Evie very unfortunately have to deal with. Bal, Huma, Jaudrey, Jarlos, and Core Four feels with a special emphasis on Evie and Mal's sisterly/best friend relationship.
Relationships: Audrey/Jay (Disney: Descendants), Ben & Evie (Disney: Descendants), Ben & Mal (Disney: Descendants), Ben/Mal (Disney: Descendants), Evie & Carlos de Vil, Evie & Celia Facilier, Evie & Jay & Mal & Carlos de Vil, Evie & Jay (Disney), Evie & Mal (Disney), Evie & Uma (Disney), Gil & Harry Hook, Gil & Harry Hook & Uma, Harry Hook & Uma, Harry Hook/Uma, Jane/Carlos de Vil, Jay & Mal (Disney), Mal & Carlos de Vil, Mal & Uma (Disney)
Series: Descendants Fanfiction [40]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1252532
Comments: 9
Kudos: 42





	1. A Hairy Situation

“Would you go away?! I don’t know you or like you!” Mal yelled in pure frustration at the charcoal colored Labrador that had been following her for what felt like forever. It laid its ears back and stopped for a moment, but it nevertheless resumed its travelling along behind her. Mal groaned loudly and kept walking, trying to think of some way to rid herself of this creature.

Honestly, it was starting to seriously creep her out. It was simply really strange. It never acted as if it would harm her at all, but it never stopped following her at that safe distance. Mal was actually pretty afraid of dogs, but she was trying to put on a brave face so it wouldn’t sense her fear and eat her or something.

Mal narrowed her eyes in irritation, wondering where Evie had gotten off to.

Evie was supposed to have been helping Mal look for Mal’s spell book that Celia had once again thought was a good idea to take from the museum. Celia loved to steal the spell book and turn simple peanut butter sandwiches into large spreads of deliciousness. She also wanted to try out very strange hairstyles that only Mal’s spell book could possibly conjure. Mal seriously had to have a talk with the Facilier, because this stealing magical artifacts for selfish reasons just couldn’t keep happening.

Additionally, Mal guessed that she had absolutely no patience for the dog because she was in such a mood as a result of Celia’s crazy shenanigans.

However, before she could ponder this much longer, the dog that had been plaguing her not too long after Evie had been gone rushed in front of her and sat down. Mal stopped and stared at the creature, looking into its eyes as she huffed. She swallowed, trying to keep from bolting or showing any of the fear that was currently rapidly coursing through her veins as a result of its proximity.

“Move,” Mal commanded angrily. The dog tilted its head to the side but held her gaze with its own strangely beautiful mocha colored eyes. Mal furrowed her brow as she considered those eyes. They really reminded Mal of someone that she was near and dear to, and she just couldn’t quite place it.

Mal looked at the dog for a little longer and didn’t really know what to think of the creature. However, before she could even begin to attempt to consider the animal any further, it moved closer to her, wagging its tail. Mal furrowed her brow, and the pet gently nosed her hand with its snout.

The faerie automatically pulled back from the dog, wiping the wetness of its nose from her skin with a frown. The dog whimpered at her, edging even closer so that its chest was practically touching her knees as she looked down at it.

Mal looked down at it quizzically and after only a moment noticed that something was glinting on its neck. Mal hesitantly started to lower herself down to its level so she could better examine the foreign object on the dog’s neck. It shifted a bit in its place on the ground in the midst of its excitement, but it mostly stayed perfectly still as Mal dropped to her knees.

Mal reached out, touching the collar around its neck tentatively and recognizing it quickly. She had bought it for Evie just the other day.

“Why did Evie put her necklace on you?” Mal questioned, halfway to the animal and halfway to herself. Mal then looked into the dog’s eyes once again and suddenly pinpointed exactly where she had seen that eye color before.

She took in a sharp breath as the reality of the situation suddenly collapsed on her in a heavy heap of surprise.

“Evie?” Mal questioned, her eyes wide. The silvery animal jumped up in its happiness, barking in excitement as she surged forward, licking Mal’s nose. Mal absently wiped the slobber away as she just stared at the dog that was supposedly her sister.

“How did this happen?” Mal questioned and gaped at her before realizing that Evie wouldn’t be able to respond in her current form. Mal shook her head absently as Evie moved up to her closely, putting her face near Mal’s own. As Mal breathed, she could certainly smell Evie’s signature perfume that always seemed to permeate everywhere the bluenette went.

Evie whined after a moment, and Mal found that she really wished she could understand what Evie was saying to her. Perhaps she’d know why Evie was in this mess in the first place.

Mal slowly stood up as she considered the situation, Evie quickly sidling up to her loyally and staring up at her as if she were her only link to the world. Of course, Mal really was her only link to the human world.

“E, I need to find a gummy bear and put the truth spell on it so you can talk,” Mal informed the dog standing next to her, and she felt a little dumb speaking to someone or something that couldn’t return any sort of conversation. However, as Evie nodded her head, Mal found that it wasn’t quite as embarrassing as she perceived it to be in the first place.

Mal started to head for Evie’s Jeep Renegade that the bluenette had so ridiculously named Charlene, a wide-eyed expression on her face as she reeled in the aftershock of whatever had happened to Evie. She couldn’t help but question how it happened, and she was eager to spell the truth gummy so that her inquiring mind could be settled.

Before long, they reached the parking lot and Evie hurried in front of Mal, sitting beside the driver’s side door and looking at her best friend expectantly. Mal shook her head, knowing that Evie wasn’t even thinking of her position as a dog and only wanted to drive her vehicle as she always did.

“Okay, E, you can’t drive. You’re a dog. It’s just not happening,” Mal told her, and Evie’s ears laid back as she looked quite disappointed indeed. Mal walked over to the passenger side, and opened the door. Evie hurried over and hopped up into the car easily.

Mal traversed to the other side of the Jeep and she opened the door only to find Evie in her dog form sitting there in the driver’s seat, eyeing her with an unimpressed expression. Mal groaned, now realizing that Evie must have thought that she could drive even as a dog.

“Scoot,” Mal instructed, and Evie remained sitting firmly in the seat. Mal rolled her eyes, hauling herself up in Evie’s vehicle as she squeezed in next to the dog. For the first time, Mal was actually thankful for her much smaller form since she was able to so easily sit with Evie.

Mal looked at the dog, her nose almost touching Evie’s long snout.

“Are you going to move?” Mal questioned, and Evie didn’t attempt to communicate anything outside of a slight tilt of her head. Mal sighed, cranking the car and starting in her journey back to the castle where she knew that Ben kept a gummy bear stash that she could infiltrate.

They drove along in silence for a few moments before Evie started to paw at the radio buttons. Evie looked at Mal helplessly when absolutely nothing actually worked as a result of her efforts. Mal smiled at her sympathetically as she repositioned one of her hands on the wheel.

“Here, let me turn it on,” Mal offered before turning the knob so that a station would start to play. Sure enough, some tunes came through the speakers, but Evie was obviously in no mood to listen to rap right then if her disgusted curled up lip was anything to go by.

Mal quickly switched it to the next station, and Evie almost growled as “Body Like a Backroad” came through the speakers. Mal resisted the urge to laugh as she let it play for a minute, knowing how much Evie absolutely despised the song. Mal actually didn’t have a problem with it at all, and it was one of Uma’s favorite songs. Especially since the pirate captain had found out how Evie had felt about it.

However, after a few moments, Mal finally had mercy upon Evie as Mal noticed that the hairs on Evie’s back were actually starting to raise up in the midst of her irritation at the song. Mal switched it to the pop station and she immediately noticed how Evie settled in the seat, all signs of frustration gone as “We Don’t Talk Anymore” started to play.

Before long, Mal spotted the castle not too far away and the song hit its chorus. To her surprise, Evie started to howl, trying to sing with the song as she fully enjoyed the tune. Mal couldn’t help herself, and she laughed at the dog as her head was thrown back in the midst of her enjoyment of the song.

Mal stroked Evie’s head with a hand as she carefully turned into the driveway. The girl parked in one of the giant garages to the side of the castle and shut off the car. Evie immediately stopped howling as she stared at Mal. Mal could almost hear Evie’s words as the dog questioningly eyed her.

“We’re here,” Mal informed her simply, and Evie nodded in response. Mal stepped out of the Jeep, opening the door and letting Evie out behind her, before they both headed to Mal and Ben’s wing of the castle.

They received quite a few strange looks from the servants around the castle, but no one chose to actually comment on the fact that a big charcoal-colored Labrador was following the queen through her castle, walking by Mal’s side as if the dog were a human.

After scaling several different sets of stairs, Mal let them both in Mal’s living area in the castle before tentatively calling out to see if Ben was anywhere around.

“Ben? Ben?!” Mal tried a few times, before finally deciding that the young King was not in the room or close by. She couldn’t help but breathe out in relief, not really looking forward to the extensive explaining that she was going to have to do as a result of Evie’s transformation.

“C’mon, E, Ben keeps his gummy bears right back here,” Mal beckoned the dog as she headed down the hall, despite the fact that Evie was right at her heels anywhere and everywhere that the faerie went.

Mal entered her and Ben’s shared room, and she looked under Ben’s side of the bed where she withdrew a small box. She quickly reached inside and took a blue gummy bear from the container that was full of them.

She turned to face Evie before closing her eyes, calling back to mind the exact spell that she had cast upon the candy that Dude had eaten. Once she was sure she had it, she reopened her now glowing eyes as she raised a hand over the gummy.

“ _Do this deed through and through_ , _provide the ability to speak in truth_ ,” Mal incanted as the gummy bear shone a bright green for a few moments, the reflection of the light illuminating Evie’s shiny fur in a gorgeous lime. Once it returned to its original shade of blue, Mal extended her palm to Evie. Evie gently took it from Mal’s hand as she chewed and swallowed it quickly.

“Well?” Mal questioned after a moment. Evie’s face scrunched up in disgust.

“Eww, M, couldn’t you have spelled something besides gummy bears? Those things are gross and really chewy!”


	2. The Tale Behind the Tail

“I have a whole mental list of things that I needed to say during the time that I couldn’t talk!” Evie excitedly cried, and in the midst of her happiness, she jumped for Mal’s face, her long dog tongue lolling from her mouth cheerily. As soon as it met Mal’s cheek, however, they both froze, staring at each other awkwardly.

“Okay, yikes… That’s new,” Evie couldn’t help but notice as Mal wiped dog slobber from her face.

“Yeah… I certainly don’t remember the human Evie doing that,” Mal trailed off, furrowing her brow as she realized the slimy spit was not removing itself from her so easily.

“Evie, let me ask you before you do that again, what happened?” Mal questioned finally, raising an eyebrow as she watched Evie’s snout carefully in case she needed to dodge.

“Well, the truth gummy let me talk again! Which I am super hyped about!!!” Mal’s eyes went wide as Evie suddenly started to spin in circles in the midst of her pure enthrallment at the fact that she was actually able to speak once again. Mal shook her head, recollecting herself as she proceeded to repeat her inquiry.

“No, how did this whole turning into a dog thing happen?” Mal asked, and Evie quickly stilled as her ears suddenly laid back firmly as her head drooped low.

“Um… It’s actually a funny story,” Evie grinned, her perfectly white teeth showing in a guilty expression. Mal crossed her arms over her chest as she waited for Evie to explain, getting a suspicious feeling that Evie must have done something that she shouldn’t have.

And so, Evie launched into her tale, pun not intended.

∞

_Evie had decided to search for Celia in her room as a first resort. However, before she could get very far, she realized that she actually needed to know where it was so she could find it._

_So, after asking five passersby of the AK student body and finally spotting Dizzy in the midst of the crowd, Evie at long last discovered where the girl was staying. Evie couldn’t help but be really surprised at the small amount of people that knew where Celia was living._

_Evie approached the girl’s door and knocked on it carefully._

_“Hey, Celia? Are you home?” Evie questioned, and she heard quite a bit of rustling around before she received a response._

_“Yeah! Come on in!” the girl cried in a much too cheerily and out of breath sort of manner to keep Evie’s suspicions at bay. The bluenette entered the room with her brow furrowed disappointedly, preparing to guilt trip the girl into returning the book._

_For her part, Celia was sitting there on the bed as innocently as she could manage, leaned back against a barrage of pillows on her bed. Evie immediately conjectured where she felt that the spell book likely was, and she tilted her head as she looked at the Facilier._

_“Celia, I think you’ve taken something that doesn’t belong to you,” Evie started, and Celia’s eyes imperceptibly widened as she obviously tried to maintain all semblances of innocence that she possibly could._

_“Why would I do that?”_

_“I don’t know. I’m just… Very disappointed in whoever did do it,” Evie expressed, sighing and pretending that she was just terribly distressed. Out of the corner of her vision, she watched as Celia lost a considerable amount of her façade._

_“M’s worried sick about it, scared that some misunderstood, angry villain kid could have gotten his or her hands on it and could make a rash decision that could affect Auradon terribly,” Evie continued to try to draw Celia into her trap. Evie shook her head sadly._

_“I just hope that we can find it before trouble strikes or before Mal has an aneurism,” Evie concluded, starting to leave out the door and mentally counting the moments before Celia would most assuredly admit her guilt._

_“Evie, wait!” Celia called, and Evie turned around, her soulful brown eyes penetrating that of the other girl’s. Celia bit her lip and sighed before reaching under the pillow pile just behind her. She extended her arm, and Evie spotted Mal’s spell book._

_Evie smiled her famous one-thousand-watt grin as she hurried over to Celia._

_“Oh, thank you!” Evie cried out almost theatrically as she hugged the girl tightly, before pulling back to look her in the eye. “Now Mal won’t have to die of a heart attack.”_

_Celia giggled, rolling her eyes as Evie started out the door._

_“Seriously, thank you, Celia, for doing the right thing,” Evie smiled sweetly, and Celia nodded to her. Evie winked before leaving out, shutting the door behind her._

_Now she had to find Mal. Her first instinct was to reach for her phone to text the other girl, but it quickly occurred to her that she had left her phone at Mal’s castle because it had a low battery charge. Evie sighed, but started through the school in search of her best friend._

_Before long, however, Evie found that curiosity was prickling at the edges of her mind, pushing her to open the infamous spell book that was so revered. Evie at first dismissed this thought. After all, something bad could happen. However, she was not magical, and therefore there should theoretically be no dangers to just looking through the book. So, Evie tentatively opened it, and she started to look through the pages._

_“Huh, a potion for speaking foreign languages… A spell for photographic memory… These sound like something that someone would use if they were a really bad student,” Evie muttered to herself, giggling at the thought of such a dangerous book being utilized for such harmless activities._

_Evie flipped to another section of the book, hoping to read something that was at least a little more interesting. She read several more spells before finally finding one that sounded absolutely ridiculous._

_“My goodness, who in the world would use that? That is just silly!” Evie rolled her eyes. She looked around, ensuring that no one was nearby, before poising herself in a Mal-like position where she held her hand in that familiar posture and read the spell aloud to herself._

_“_ Let your word become a howl, snarl, or bark, spirit animal, make your mark,” _Evie waved her hand, giggling at the ridiculous sound of the spell. However, she suddenly felt an odd tingle in her head, and her eyes rolled back in her head as she fell to the ground hard._

_After a few moments, or a few minutes, or a few hours- Evie honestly wasn’t sure how long it had been- Evie’s eyelids fluttered open, and her muscles felt exceedingly sore as she gathered herself so that she was resting on all fours. Evie blinked hard, looking down at her hands. Or at least, where her hands would have been. Instead of hands, there were two charcoal-shaded paws there in front of her._

_The girl yelped in pure surprise, sitting on her behind as she tried to raise her arms to look at them. However, she couldn’t keep her balance, and she fell on her back. Evie looked down her chest to see hairy back legs and a long tail tucked between her legs fearfully. Evie’s eyes went wide as it suddenly occurred to her that she was certainly no human any longer._

_She was a dog._

_∞_

“And then I went to find you, because I was kind of lowkey freaking out, and I knew you could fix it,” Evie panted happily, her pride and trust in her sister overshadowing all of the other negative emotions surrounding the situation.

“What happened to the spell book?” Mal questioned desperately, and Evie gaped at the other girl, her mouth hanging slightly ajar as she considered the inquiry.

“Well… I don’t know. I completely forgot about it in the middle of all this,” Evie whined, and Mal instinctively reached out to the other girl, placing a hand on her thickly furred neck carefully as the faerie resisted the urge to be very frustrated and irritated at the bluenette.

“Why did you play with the spell book?” Mal asked her finally as she tried to keep her voice controlled and attempted to keep any signs of anger out of it so she wouldn’t make Evie feel any worse than she already did. But Evie obviously picked up on it, and the dog immediately moved closer to the slightly younger girl.

“I don’t know! I thought it’d be cool to pretend to be magical like you, and I didn’t think it’d work really. I have no magic at all,” Evie told the faerie, resting her chin on Mal’s knee.

“Please don’t be mad at me,” Evie whimpered, looking up at Mal with those big brown eyes that so successfully got anyone to do almost anything that Evie wanted. The effects of Evie’s puppy-dog eyes seemed to be tenfold now that Evie had actually transformed into a dog.

Mal stared at her for a moment, and finally groaned with a smile, patting the back of Evie’s neck gently as she pushed away all of the negative feelings.

“I’m not mad,” Mal assured her, and Evie immediately perked up, her ears alert as she panted happily.

“Oh, good!” Evie lunged forward, licking Mal’s face before she could stop herself. Mal winced in disgust and Evie pulled back quickly.

“But I really wish you’d stop doing that,” Mal admitted, wiping furiously at her cheek with her sleeve.

“I’m so sorry, M! I don’t know what keeps getting into me! It’s almost like I’m fused with an actual dog,” Evie explained somewhat worriedly. Mal furrowed her brow, tilting her head as she considered the thought.

“Maybe you are, Evie. Maybe you’re thinking like a human, but given that you’re in a dog body, you’re getting certain dog urges,” Mal suggested, finding that thought rather interesting.

Almost as if she were accentuating Mal’s statement, Evie raised one of her hind legs to scratch behind her ear thoroughly. However, mid-scratch, she regained control of herself and she stopped quickly, bringing her foot back down to the floor.

“Well, that’s embarrassing,” Evie announced to the fae, ducking her head as she looked away. Mal hummed in response, considering Evie’s actions and newfound behaviors.

“As long as you don’t go licking your butt in public, I guess it’ll be okay,” Mal joked, and Evie’s eyes widened in horror as she considered the thought.

“I do not plan to do that!” Evie emphatically expressed, and Mal stood up carefully, her lips pursed as her thoughts slightly shifted from the dog at hand.

“We’re going to need to find that spell book so we can change you back,” Mal proclaimed, and Evie nodded her head.

“C’mon, we need to inform the squad about this,” Mal angled her head to cue Evie to follow her. Of course, it was quite needless because Evie was already practically glued to her side.

“We should probably go see Carlos first,” Evie suggested, and Mal nodded. “After all, he’s still going to Auradon Prep, and he’ll have more opportunities to look for the spell book.”

And so they headed out in hopes of quickly resolving this issue of dogdom. Little did they know, this fix was not going to be found nearly as quickly as they hoped.


	3. Put A Leash on That Thing!

Mal and Evie walked through one of the lower levels of the castle where Mal had arranged a living space for everyone in her so beloved squad. Even Evie, who had her own starter castle, had a room there where her and Mal sometimes spent several nights together in reminiscence of their times in school.

Mal knew that Carlos would be in his room there because school hours had ended, and he usually came home soon after that so he could grab something to eat.

They soon reached the de Vil boy’s door and Mal knocked on the door.

“Yo, Lil’ C? You home?” Mal called, and she soon received a response from the other boy.

“Yeah, come in,” Carlos instructed, and Mal let out a breath before opening the door, letting Evie in before entering herself.

They both quickly spotted the other boy lounged on the couch and chomping on chips as he played some video game that looked like some sort of ninja roleplay. Dude was resting on the couch nearby him, keeping a close eye out for any crumbs that might fall.

“Good grief, Mal, you should know you can just walk in. I mean, dang,” Carlos told her, and Evie’s ears pricked up as she homed in on the white-haired boy on the sofa.

Before Mal could say anything to the boy in warning about what he was going to see when he removed his focus from his game, Evie went bounding away from Mal’s side and leapt over the side of the couch, landing right on Carlos as she proceeded to lick his face.

“WOAH! What the heck?!” Carlos cried, trying to keep from laughing as the dog’s tongue covered his face in slobbery, wet kisses. Mal hurried over, grabbing Evie’s shoulders and trying to pull her off of the boy.

“Woah, ho, ho, who’s this?” Carlos questioned with a laugh, reaching over and rubbing Evie’s ears as she licked her lips.

“Mmm, potato chips are my favorite. They’re so salty and good,” Evie announced before realizing in horror what she had done to Carlos. The boy’s eyes went wide, and his jaw fell slack as he gaped at Evie in her dog form. Mal sighed, pinching the bridge of her nose with a hand as Carlos stared.

“Evie found my spell book, read one of the spells, and accidentally turned herself into a dog,” Mal explained, and Carlos’ gaze shifted up to Mal before returning to Evie carefully. After a few moments, he nodded, but then got an extremely disgusted look on his face.

“You mean _Evie_ just licked my face?! EW!” Carlos swiftly brought his sleeves up and wiped at his face furiously. Mal shut her eyes, trying to resist the urge to laugh at the boy but at the same time sympathizing with him deeply.

“I am so sorry, Snowflake, I don’t know what came over me!” Evie immediately apologized, valiantly attempting to keep her eyes on Carlos’ face instead of the chip bag that was right there in front of her.

Mal noticed that Evie was actually starting to drool as she eyed the potato chips, so she picked up the bag and threw them onto the nearby counter.

“Hey!” Carlos and Evie both complained at the same time, and Mal rolled her eyes at them.

“She’s been getting dog urges with this new dog form, so I thought it’d be best to try to avoid another disaster like attacking you with her tongue,” Mal explained her actions and Carlos nodded to her before studying Evie carefully.

“So, you’re really a dog, huh? With dog urges and everything?” Carlos asked. Evie nodded, throwing one final longing glance at the bag on the counter before paying full attention to the boy before her.

“Well, as long as you don’t go licking your butt or anything, we’ll be good,” Carlos joked and Mal couldn’t help but laugh since she had said that exact same statement to Evie just a little earlier.

“But seriously, I gotta say, you make a really pretty charcoal Labrador Retriever,” Carlos complimented with a smile and Evie’s tail started to wag at lightning speed, hitting Mal’s leg repeatedly.

“Wait, I’m an actual breed of dog?! M, did you hear that? That is so reassuring. I was so scared that I was a mutt,” Evie informed him with a sigh of relief as she looked up at Mal, very pleased with herself.

“There’s nothing wrong with a mutt!” Dude suddenly declared, much closer to Evie than she had anticipated, and Evie stumbled back a bit in surprise as her body ran into Mal’s leg firmly.

“Hi. I like you a lot better in dog form,” Dude told her in a really awkward and sincere manner, and Evie offered a small smile, trying to resist the urge to tuck tail and hide behind Mal. However, she did move away just a bit.

Mal shook her head at the two dogs, and she looked to Carlos.

“Okay, so we need you to keep an eye out for my spell book at the school. I can change her back as soon as we get access to the book.”

“I thought you memorized most of the spells in it before you gave it up.”

“That’s just it: _most_ of the spells, not all of them,” Mal replied, sighing as considered the great possibilities of things that could have happened to the magical book.

“I’ll keep an eye out for it,” Carlos assured her, and Mal looked at him, smiling gratefully.

“Hey! Stop doing that!” Evie suddenly cried, and the two human VKs turned their gazes to the dogs on the floor. Dude was standing just behind Evie, and she hurried away, her tail tucked between her legs firmly.

“What’s the big deal? It’s just saying hello!” Dude announced before hurrying over to Evie and commencing to try to sniff her behind again. Evie’s ear laid back and she took off running through the house, Dude hot on her heels.

“That’s just not right!” Evie announced as she hurried around the couch and toward the kitchen. At the last minute, she veered off into the bedroom, jumping on top of the bed and then hopping off the other side.

Dude never stopped the whole time and he remained close behind her.

“C’mon! I’ll let you sniff mine!”

“That is disgusting! You are a bad dog! Bad dog!” Evie told him sternly as she rushed into Mal. The faerie grabbed Evie firmly in her arms, trying to keep her still. Dude’s ears quickly drooped, and he hopped into Carlos’ lap.

“She used the b-word,” Dude whined, and Carlos scratched between his ears gently.

“I know, bud.”

“He tried to sniff my butt,” Evie whined to Mal, and she stroked Evie’s head carefully as she resisted the overwhelming urge to laugh at her best friend.

“Why don’t you sniff his?” Mal asked her, unable to keep the laugh out of her voice, and Evie looked at her as if she had completely lost her mind.

“That is just absolutely uncouth!” Evie cried. Mal shook her head, opening her mouth to say something else to Carlos before there was a knock at the door. Carlos angled his head so he could peer over the edge of the couch.

“That’s probably Jane. Come in!” Carlos called, one arm thrown over the couch and another stroking Dude’s back.

The door opened to reveal Jane, an easy smile on her face as she strolled through the door. Before she could even shut the door, Evie went running toward her, panting and wagging all over in her pure happiness to see one of her friends.

However, Jane did not react with nearly the same enthusiasm that Evie had, and she instead went quite pale as she took off out the door screaming, Evie following her quickly. Mal and Carlos looked at each other before hurrying after the two.

“No, no! I don’t taste good!” Jane helplessly cried, running from Evie in pure fear of the big dog.

“Evie, stop!” Mal called firmly, hoping that the new dog side of her best friend would regain control of itself.

Sure enough, to her relief, Evie stopped quickly, digging her feet into the rug running down the hallway. Evie looked back at Mal with a puzzled expression, her head tilted adorably as she tried to understand why she had started chasing the other girl.

“Jane, wait! The dog’s Evie!” Carlos yelled, and Jane came to a stop quickly, slowly turning toward Carlos as she registered what he had said.

“Evie? That really big, really ferocious dog that just tried to eat me whole is Evie?” Jane tentatively questioned and Carlos nodded.

“I didn’t mean to scare you, Jane. These dog urges are a bit too much sometimes,” Evie apologetically explained and Jane came back to the group hesitantly. She looked at Carlos questioningly, and he nodded to cue her that it was safe to look at the dog closer. Jane leaned down to look at Evie, carefully examining her.

“Wow, this is really Evie? She’s a dog?”

“Yeah, I’m a dog. Although, I really wish that you’d stop calling me that. It’s kind of traumatizing,” Evie gently requested, and Jane sympathetically eyed the girl.

“Who knows about this?” Jane asked, looking up at the faerie nearby her.

“So far, it’s just me, you, and Carlos,” Mal informed her.

“And us,” a voice suddenly piped up, and Mal turned around to see Uma, Harry, and Gil standing not too far behind her.

Evie panted happily upon seeing them, and she wagged her tail as she approached them, her dog mode of greeting overtaking her. Uma raised an eyebrow as she looked at Mal with a slight grin. Gil leaned down and started to scratch her neck, not really understanding that he was dealing with his crush instead of a normal dog.

“This is really crazy. How did it happen?” Uma finally asked Mal.

“Evie got the spell book and accidentally turned herself into a dog.” Uma quietly considered this for a moment before chuckling in response.

“What’s so funny?” Mal demanded, too absorbed in what was happening to really consider it from any other viewpoint.

“Look at it this way. Your best friend is currently turned into a dog as a result of her own doings. It’s really not harmful at all, and she does a ton of embarrassing things. How are you not finding this funny?” Uma questioned, before her eyes shifted to Gil who was currently getting far too much enjoyment from petting the dog that was really not a dog.

“Gil, stop petting her. She’s not a dog,” Uma finally commanded her crewmate, and he stood up disappointedly before Evie’s eyes widened as she realized what she had done. She quickly returned to Mal’s side, somewhat ashamed of herself.

Mal moved her head in an agreeing gesture, realizing that it was actually pretty humorous.

“Yeah, see what I mean?” Uma pointed out as Mal started to giggle about the whole situation. Evie looked between the both of them, gazing at Mal with an unimpressed expression and eyeing Uma with a disappointed acceptance. However, her thoughts were immediately disrupted as her stomach growled rather loudly.

“I’m really hungry,” Evie suddenly piped up, and Mal pulled herself together as she shrugged.

“Okay, let’s go grab you a snack from the fridge. Feel like some lasagna?” Mal offered, and Evie’s mouth immediately started to drool at the thought of food. Carlos raised an eyebrow at Evie’s weird dog behavior and quickly interjected.

“Actually, human food is usually not good for dogs.”

“I’m not eating dog food,” Evie swiftly informed him, staring at the boy with a firm expression.

“Whooped and she’s not even yer girlfriend,” Harry suddenly proclaimed offhandedly with an evil smile. Carlos completely ignored the other boy and held a hand up in a placating gesture toward Evie, indicating that she should hear him out.

“Yes, and I knew you wouldn’t go for that, so I was going to offer some of my best recipes for Dude that involve dog-friendly human food,” Carlos announced proudly grinning at Jane who had found her way nearby him as soon as the son of Hook had appeared.

“Trust me, you don’t want to eat them. You’ll be begging for Canine Crunchies before he’s through with that bland human food,” Dude suddenly trotted up, expressing his distaste.

“Hey! They aren’t that bad…”

“I’m sorry. I’m spelled to tell the truth, what can I say? Plus, I’m an honest kind of dog.”

“Even yer dog can burn ye! Get some ice-cold water!” Harry pointed his hook at the other boy with a wicked laugh, fully amused with his own mischief. Jane pursed her lips in an angry pout as she eyed the pirate boy with some frustration at his antagonistic attitude toward her boyfriend.

“If you don’t want to try out mine, you could go to the pet store. You’d have the opportunity to talk to the employees to find out about all of the best kinds of organic recipes for dogs,” Carlos informed them, but not before throwing a disdainful look in Harry’s direction. “I know this old lady there and she is a super big help with things like that.”

“Hey, and you might could get her some other stuff like a leash and a collar to reel that puppy in,” Uma suggested, and Evie’s eyes went wide as she looked up at Uma with some offense. Mal snorted at Uma’s statement, but she nodded.

“That’s probably not a bad idea,” Mal agreed finally. “However, we do need somebody to go to the supermarket and pick up some food.”

Uma nodded, looking back at Harry and Gil just behind her.

“Okay, you guys go do the grocery-getting and we’ll call with the list when we find out from the old lady. Just don’t cause any trouble, okay?” Uma pointedly stared at Harry. Harry stared at her with wide eyes, portraying complete innocence.

“Do ye really think that I would do anything-” Uma just glared at him and Harry shook his head with a grunt. “Yeah, I’d probably do somethin’.”

Uma rolled her eyes and then she pointed at Gil.

“Listen to Harry. You guys can’t keep getting kicked out of stores and getting tickets because some of us drive too fast,” Uma directed that last comment at particularly Harry. Harry and Gil both nodded, the former with significantly less enthusiasm.

Uma moved her head in agreement as well, taking Harry’s arm before she left and leaning into him quickly. He eagerly closed the distance, before she pulled away after a few moments, a slight smile on her face in spite of herself. Gil’s lips had curled into an enormous grin and he was excitedly eyeing his captain.

“Can I get a kiss, too?!” Gil asked, and Uma was immediately reminded of a small child. However, as innocent as he likely intended the question, Uma really couldn’t let him get away with saying something like that in case he said it to someone who might take him seriously.

“We’ve talked about this. Me and Harry are together. You and I ain’t together, so it ain’t happening,” Uma informed him shortly. However, she did affectionately clap him on the shoulder before turning to join the other two girls.

“Let’s go,” Mal told her, and they headed for the pet store, Evie padding along on the floor alongside them.


	4. Unfortunately Got a Leash on That Thing

“I cannot believe that we’re seriously doing this. I am not somebody’s pet!” Evie indignantly announced to the two girls as they headed into the pet store, Evie close beside Mal. Uma just groaned loudly, throwing her head back in pure frustration as she listened to Evie’s whine for what felt like the thousandth time.

“You’re Mal’s pet. Now shut up before people start staring!” Uma commanded, and Evie closed her mouth, throwing Uma a nasty look.

“I really hope we don’t run into any cops, because I’m pretty sure there’s a leash law,” Mal nervously expressed, and Evie pressed her nose against Mal’s knee gently in an expression of reassurance.

“What? You didn’t use that remembering spell on all of the laws of Auradon like you used it on the spells in your very much illegal book?”

Mal just stared at Uma, glaring at the other girl with her eyes narrowed as she resisted the overwhelming urge to growl under her breath.

They entered the pet store, Mal holding the door open for Evie as they went in. The place was sleek and crisp in its modernity, and Mal couldn’t help but admire the setup. There were several people around with dogs of all shapes and sizes, all inspecting the varying pet products. There was a grooming area on the nearest corner to the door, and Mal’s eyes widened as she spotted an employee shaving a dog.

Apparently, Uma must have spotted the same part of the store as Mal had, and her entire face lit up in an enormous grin as she moved her gaze down to Evie.

“You feel like a little trim today?” Uma suggested nonchalantly, and Evie’s eyes were wide and her jaw was dropped in the midst of her pure horror at the very idea of looking anywhere near the way that the poodle not too far from them was looking as the woman shaved the fur around her hips.

“Okay, Uma, I think you’ve successfully traumatized her,” Mal cut in, trying to guide Evie along as she reached down and pulled at Evie’s shoulder. Evie finally spurred herself into motion as she absentmindedly walked with them, her gaze still locked upon the poor victim of a dog that was getting clipped.

They approached the boy nearby that was stocking the shelves, his back to them, and Mal cleared her throat, getting his attention. The boy turned to face them and Evie almost found herself drooling at the very sight of him.

It was Leo, the very handsome, very well-muscled son of Hercules, and also known as the boy that could make any girl swoon with just a slight flash of those perfect teeth. Those gorgeous violet eyes and that thick, brown hair made Evie a little weak in the knees despite herself.

“Hi,” Mal greeted, completely unfazed by his obvious charms.

“Hey! What brings the Queen to my part of town?” he flirted nonchalantly, and Mal felt Evie leaning hard against her leg in what was almost a faint as her tail wagged ridiculously hard. Uma angled her head toward Mal a bit, her mouth nearby the purple-haired girl’s ear.

“I’m beginning to rethink the whole Harry Hook package,” Uma mumbled to Mal, unashamedly looking Leo up and down as she regarded him. Mal rolled her eyes, knowing that Uma wasn’t serious and was quite possibly the most loyal person in that she would never desert Harry or any of her friends. Mal knew Uma was just enjoying looking at the boy. Even Mal could see that he was incredibly good-looking.

“Well, we are looking for several things. We need a leash and a harness. We also need to talk to an employee here. She’s an older lady?” Mal requested, hoping that Leo would have at least a bit of an idea of where things were.

He blinked at her, and he looked down at the box nearby him before he smiled.

“Here’s a leash and a harness, but if you want more variety, check Aisle Six over there,” Leo pointed in a vague direction somewhere on the far-left corner of the store. Mal nodded slowly as she observed the leash and collar. It was a startling shade of bright pink, which Mal knew Evie wouldn’t go for. If she was going to have to be dressed in dog-wear, then she would want her apparel in her colors.

“And the old lady that you’re talking about is Heather, and she’s off today,” Leo informed them, his hands in his pockets as Mal took that in with some disappointment.

“Oh, well,” Mal started to turn away so that they could head toward the aisle he had mentioned, but it quickly occurred to her that she could see if he could give her any information.

“Hey, do you know about dog-friendly human food recipes?” Mal tried. Leo shrugged his shoulders with a crooked smile. If it was at all possible, Evie’s tail wagged even harder at the sight of his grin.

“I don’t know much about that, I’m afraid,” Leo informed her, and Mal nodded, resigning to text Carlos about his recipes before they informed Harry and Gil about what to get.

“Well, thank you anyway. I guess we’ll head over there and see what we can find,” Mal informed, moving away with Evie close beside her.

“No problem! Make sure you get that dog on a leash, though. It’s a fine one, and you wouldn’t want anything to happen to it,” Leo suggested before turning back to his work.

As soon as they were out of earshot and eyeshot, Evie let out a dreamy sigh before dropping to the tiled floor.

“Evie? What are you doing?” Mal questioned, and Evie just smiled dopily up at her.

“He said I looked fine,” Evie explained, her eyes practically sparkling. Mal just rolled her eyes and reached down, trying to drag Evie up.

“That’s just it. ‘Fine.’ Not good looking or anything,” Uma piped up, but Evie was too absorbed in her own infatuation to consider Uma’s comment.

“C’mon. I think you got a bad case of puppy love,” Mal informed her and Evie hesitantly stood up to walk with her, her tail still moving in that ever-present wag that it had been having since she spotted the boy.

The three entered Aisle Six, their eyes wide as they gaped at all of the dog accessories. Evie grinned widely at all of it, completely dazzled by the amount of possibilities.

“Look at all the stuff,” Evie spoke, her voice conveying just how amazed she was feeling.

“I want this!” Evie quickly cried, hurrying over and sticking her nose to a red harness with decorative spikes as her tail wagged furiously. Mal strolled over and took it off the hanger easily, smiling at her best friend’s enthusiasm.

Evie then bounded over to the leashes, marveling at them for a moment before she grabbed a matching leash between her teeth and tugged it down to her level. However, she accidentally broke the hanger in the midst of her effort, and it went clattering down to the floor. Uma and Mal’s eyes widened as Evie stared at the hanger in shock.

Uma then edged over and kicked the hanger underneath the shelves. Evie looked up at her strangely, and Uma shrugged.

“Y’know, hide the evidence,” Uma chuckled nervously and backed away so that she was standing next to the faerie.

Uma looked around carefully, checking for anybody that could have seen them knock it down.

“We need a collar,” Uma suddenly announced, completely deadpan. Evie glanced up at her, shaken from her stupor as she attempted to find out what Uma was planning.

“ _Why_ do we need a collar?” Mal asked, and Uma’s lips curved in a wicked grin. Evie’s tail drooped as she realized that Uma was surely about to suggest something positively humiliating.

“Because look at that!” Uma pointed eagerly, and Mal followed her finger to see a dog tag dispensing machine. Evie’s ears laid back, and she looked at Mal desperately, hoping she’d save her.

“M, now that’s just adding insult to injury,” Evie expressed and Mal looked down at the dog apologetically before heading over to the tag machine.

“I’m sorry, Evie, but it really might not be such a bad idea to get some physical identification for you just in case.” Mal pressed a few buttons on the machine, getting ready to type Evie’s name and Mal’s phone number.

Uma leaned against one side of the machine, watching Mal type before she smiled widely and glanced at Evie.

“You know, we could put Mudball as your name and you couldn’t do a thing about it,” Uma mentioned, and Evie sat directly next to Mal, looking up at her best friend faithfully and knowing that she wouldn’t do anything like that to her.

“You want the tag in gold, red, blue, pink, black, or green?” Mal questioned, moving her gaze to the dog resting at her feet.

“Gold, please. It’ll match the leash and the harness we’ve already got,” Evie requested, and Mal tapped a button.

“Okay… Type my phone number… And it should be ready,” Mal announced before swiping her credit card. After a few moments, the tag was dispensed, and Mal held up the shiny, heart-shaped gold tag.

“Now, let’s get a collar,” Uma excitedly told her before hurrying back into the aisle. Mal furrowed her brow as she approached Uma from behind.

“Why are you so excited about this?”

“I don’t know. Something about the humiliation that comes with being an official pet with a tag and everything,” Uma explained herself, unable to keep her monstrous grin away. Evie came over and touched a red spiked collar with her nose.

“This is the only collar I can agree to,” Evie begrudgingly spoke, and Mal took it. They then left toward the front of the store and approached the cashier. Once they paid for the items, Mal knelt down in front of Evie, and clasped the collar around her neck. Evie touched her cold nose to Mal’s hand fondly and Mal smiled slightly before taking the harness.

“Okay, E, help me out here, because this might be a little tricky,” Mal told her, and Evie nodded subtly. After all, there were people around, and they were trying to be at least a little surreptitious about Evie’s ability to speak.

Mal held out the holes and Evie stepped in carefully. Mal then connected the harness together across her back before clipping the leash onto the harness. After that, Mal finally slid the tag onto the collar before standing up with a smile.

“You look cute,” Mal complimented and Evie’s tail wagged happily at the praise. Mal then handed the leash to Uma carefully. Uma raised an eyebrow, confused at the sudden handover of responsibility for dealing with the dog.

“I’ve got to use the bathroom. You hold onto her for a minute. I won’t be too long,” Mal assured her before leaving toward the restroom. Uma and Evie shared a glance before Uma started to look around the place as they waited. Her eyes skimmed over several rather uninteresting parts of the store until her gaze fell upon a certain booth toward the right.

She scanned the name that was above the table and she smiled widely, starting over toward it as Evie followed along trustingly.

However, when they got really close to the booth, Evie stopped, her paw-pads dug into the tile of the floor as she realized where they were going.

“Uma, what are we doing?” Evie questioned, and Uma just tugged at the leash as she started trying to drag her.

“We’re getting you microchipped,” Uma informed her as she pulled the dog across the slick floor. Evie started trying to scramble backward, but Uma’s strength coupled with her better grip on the floor left Evie on the losing end.

“No way!”

“Yes way. After all, Mal said that we should have physical identification just in case,” Uma wickedly spoke, and Evie started putting even more force into getting away.

“No! I’m not a dog!” Evie cried, completely forgoing any sense of quietness as everyone started to turn and stare at the pirate captain that was currently dragging a talking dog across the store.

“You look like a dog to me,” Uma expressed as she finally reached the table. She placed her elbow on it as she leaned hard, putting her weight into keeping a hold on the dog.

“Okay, I want my friend’s dog microchipped.” Uma kept a tight hold on the leash as Evie continued trying her best to escape.

“Mal!” Evie called loudly, trying to get her one and only chance at being saved to come.

The people at the desk handed Uma a clipboard and she signed Mal’s information quickly onto the paper before the staff reviewed it.

Uma couldn’t help but feel just a little bad, and despite her wicked enjoyment of the humor behind it all, Uma really did have Evie’s best interest at heart. Since that Leo boy suggested that something could happen to her, Uma had gotten a bad feeling in her gut about Evie and what could occur while she was a dog. Of course, Uma had to cover it up with a sick sense of humor in torturing Evie, but that really wasn’t her ultimate goal due to the fact that she actually was truly concerned and caring about Evie’s safety in this vulnerable state.

However, before anything else could happen, Evie managed to pull the leash out of Uma’s hand with a mighty thrust, and she started running through the store, her feet slipping in her haste. Uma’s eyes widened and she took off after her like a madwoman.

Evie rounded a corner, her leash catching on the shelf, and it started to lean with the pure force that she was exerting upon it. Uma stopped quickly, hurrying backward as the shelf slowly fell on another one, starting a domino effect.

For a moment, Uma just stared, but she then quickly ran down the center of the aisles in a panic, terribly afraid that a shelf might fall on the dog.

The shelves were moving fast, and Uma saw that Evie was about to go down an aisle that was about to be crushed by a shelf. Uma didn’t hesitate before hurrying through the aisle, nearly crashing into Evie as she grabbed the dog and slid out from under the shelf that was quickly falling.

She safely made it to the other side, Evie huddled in her arms as they both gaped at the utterly enormous mess that had been made. Evie offered Uma a lick on the cheek as she shook fearfully.

“What was that for?” Uma asked as she winced, wiping her face on the fabric covering her shoulder.

“You really do care,” Evie beamed, her voice shaking with her joy and her pure fear. Uma rolled her eyes, patting Evie’s back firmly as she looked back at all of the pandemonium that had taken place behind them.

“Don’t go sharing that or anything. ‘Kay?” Uma smiled slightly. However, her smile quickly disappeared upon spotting a vibrantly purple head of hair through the crowd.

“What is going on?! EVIE?!” Mal yelled as she charged over, pushing through the people that had gathered. Evie crawled out Uma’s arms quickly, and Mal bent down, grabbing Evie’s face firmly in her hands as the dog whimpered in her fear.

“What happened?!” Mal demanded, staring at Uma as if she was going to kill her.

“I was going to get her microchipped,” Uma informed her as if it were the most obvious thing in the world, gathering herself to her feet as she glanced back at the shelves once more.

“Why?” Mal spat venomously as she stroked her thumbs across Evie’s furred cheeks comfortingly.

“Because I was worried about what could happen to her,” Uma expressed, an odd amount of genuineness in her voice, and Mal just huffed as she rolled her eyes.

“Boy, that is a crazy dog you’ve got,” Leo suddenly piped up, and Evie shot him a wicked glance, taking offense to his comment. Well, so much for liking him, Evie couldn’t help but think as she glared at him.

Before she could say anything else, a man came toward them, an angry look on his face as he severely failed to control his complete and utter fury.

“Your majesty, if you don’t mind, we need to clean this enormous mess that this… dog made,” he spoke, his face turning ever redder as he stood there fuming. Mal glanced at his nametag and noticed that he was the manager. She offered him a strained smile before standing up gracefully, taking Evie’s leash in her hand firmly and Uma’s arm in her other hand.

“Of course, sir. We’ll be going now,” Mal told him, attempting to dissipate the building tension in the air surrounding them as she dragged the both of them out of the store quickly.

Once they were finally out, Mal’s phone made a noise, and she checked it quickly. It was a message from Carlos, and he had sent her the list of ingredients that she had asked him for while she was in the restroom.

Mal then forwarded the message to Harry’s phone, and she stuffed it in her pocket. However, before they could even start toward Charlene, the device made another sound. Mal looked at it again, and it was Harry.

“ _Can u call me? Have small problem_ ,” the boy sent to her. Mal closed her eyes in exasperation, quite afraid indeed that Harry had done something that he most certainly was not supposed to do.

So, Mal quickly ran her hand down Uma’s pocket, feeling for the other girl’s phone in the midst of her stress surrounding the fact that they were practically kicked out of the pet store and that Evie had been completely and utterly traumatized. Uma raised an eyebrow, her upper body leaning away from the faerie a bit as she tried to regain at least a small sense of personal space.

“Is there some reason you’re doing that?” Uma questioned, and Mal withdrew Uma’s phone finally, putting it in Uma’s hand as she stuffed her own phone away.

“Call Harry. According to him there’s a problem,” Mal informed her shortly, and Uma groaned deeply before dialing his number swiftly.

It rang for a few moments before he picked up.

“ _Ahoy, Cap’n_ ,” Harry greeted on the other side of the line.

“What did you do?” Uma simply asked, not hesitating for one moment.

“ _We have an… ‘ittle bitty, tiny problem. ‘Tis certainly no reason to overreact, get cross, or blow up o’er-_ ”

“Did you get kicked out of Walmart?” Uma didn’t waste any time, already knowing from his overly large buildup that it was certainly something that she should get angry over.

“ _Ah, well_ ,” his voice got high-pitched for a moment, and Uma could picture him doing that oh-so-familiar gesture with his hook-covered hand, “ _yes. We did_.”

“Didn’t I tell you not to?!” Uma demanded, and Harry chuckled, knowing that he was definitely in big trouble.

“ _Yeah_.”

“Are you still sitting in the parking lot?”

“ _Yeah_ …”

“Get in your car and leave, moron! Go home where you’re not going to cause any more trouble!” Uma raised her voice.

“ _I love you_!” Harry announced in a sing-song tone of voice, and Uma just rolled her eyes.

“And I hate you,” Uma shot back, but there was some tenderness beneath it.

“ _Ah, ah, ah, ye know ye love me_.”

“Whatever. I keep you around, isn’t that good enough?” Uma informed him wittily but allowed a small laugh at the end to express her true feelings about it.

They then expressed their goodbyes and Uma hung up before facing Mal, her eyes half-lidded.

“Guess what we have to do?”

“Go to the Walmart and buy everything that those two idiots didn’t get because they were kicked out?” Mal questioned, keeping Uma’s same tone as she faced the other girl.

“Yep,” Uma simply replied.

“With a talking dog in our midst?”

“Pretty much.”

“Bring it on.”


	5. Walmart is Wack

“Okay, we’re here,” Mal announced, turning to look at Uma in the backseat and Evie sitting there in the passenger seat. It was rather humorous. Evie wouldn’t let Uma sit in the front because Evie wanted to be able to see everything that was going on while Mal was driving her vehicle.

“I’m going to go in, and you guys can stay out here in the car,” Mal informed them, and Evie huffed, shifting in her seat.

“I want to go in!” Evie expressed, and Mal shook her head, negating Evie’s request.

“You can’t go in. You’re a dog,” Mal informed her simply, pointing out the obvious errors in her best friend’s logic.

“But I’m not really a dog,” Evie laughed disbelievingly, shaking her head with a grin and a pant.

“E. You seriously are going to argue this point?” Mal questioned, staring at Evie with a completely unimpressed expression. Evie at least had the good graces to look just a bit sheepish, but she ultimately remained firm in her resolve.

“Anyway, you guys are staying in here regardless,” Mal announced, closing the entire conversation from any further debate. Evie immediately pouted and rested her head on the door panel as she looked out the window sourly.

“Nope. We ain’t,” Uma informed the purple-haired girl shortly. Mal tilted her head slightly, ready for whatever reason that Uma had thought of.

“Why not?”

“Because you’re leaving me out here with this whiny, irritating dog that’s going to drive me crazy until you come back and we leave.”

“Fine. You go in and get the stuff. We need some-”

“I suck at remembering stuff on a list,” Uma bluntly stated, leaning back she spotted a pair of sunglasses tucked in one of the pockets on the back of the front seats. Mal shrugged, willing to work with the other girl.

“Okay, then. I’ll text you what Carlos sent me,” Mal pulled out her phone, starting to type something to the pirate captain.

“How about I just don’t want to go in?” Mal let her hand drop in frustration as she glared at Uma.

“You don’t want to stay out here with her, and you don’t want to go in. This can’t work.”

“I dunno. _Make_ it work. You like being the boss,” Uma finally reached over, grabbing the sunglasses and placing them on her face with a satisfied smile.

Mal furrowed her brow as she crossed her arms over her chest.

“We can’t all go in. Dogs aren’t ever allowed in Walmart under any circumstances unless they’re…” Mal quietly looked between a calm, albeit sulking Evie and a sunglasses-clad Uma. Uma raised an eyebrow, suddenly worried about what Mal had thought of.

Mal grinned widely, all of her teeth showing in an expression of enjoyment of her pure wicked genius.

“I’ve got an idea.”

After a few moments, Uma, Mal, and Evie were heading toward the front doors of the Walmart.

“You do realize that this is never going to work, don’t you?” Uma asked Mal as they started into Walmart with Evie in her harness and her new leash rigged so that it slightly resembled the traditional setup for a blind person.

“You asked for a way to make it work, and this is my way,” Mal shot back quickly and Uma rolled her eyes, looking back in the direction of the car longingly before resuming in her forward gaze.

“Sure thing, boss,” Uma sarcastically replied under her breath.

“Shut up and act like a blind person,” Mal snapped, and Uma raised an eyebrow as she lowered her glasses a bit to better stare at the faerie.

“And how exactly do they act?”

“I don’t know! Like they can’t see anything!”

“Well, they really _can’t_ see anything.”

“Then act like you can’t see anything!”

They quieted once they entered the store, and Mal looked at Uma to make sure that she looked the way that she should. Her sunglasses were sliding down her nose as she looked around, and Mal quickly reached over and pushed at the bridge of them so she’d look like she was blind.

Uma immediately groaned, stilling as she waited for Mal to get a shopping cart.

“Come on, this is Walmart. You know they’ve seen stranger than a blind person staring at them with a talking seeing-eye dog.”

“I’m not a talking dog. I’m just like any other guide dog,” Evie informed her out of the corner of her mouth as Mal rejoined them. They continued about their way, entering deeper into the store.

“Seriously, they’ve got whole websites dedicated to the weirdness of Walmart.”

“Yeah, they’re so awesome. I’ve favorited practically all of the websites on my laptop and I get notifications anytime that there’s a new picture,” Evie informed her, forgetting the whole rule about not talking.

Mal cleared her throat, looking at Evie pointedly, and Evie lowered her ears, shutting her mouth as she tried to act more like a dog. Uma rolled her eyes, continuing in her fussing about having to pretend to be blind.

“Last time I checked, I didn’t come in practically naked or looking like a hobo, so I think we’re fine. I can look and act like I’m not blind and there probably won’t be a problem.”

“Do you not remember what just happened not thirty minutes ago?” Mal questioned, and Uma quieted, sulking as she allowed Evie to lead her through the store.

“Yeah. That’s what I thought.”

Mal pushed the cart through the refrigerated food section and gathered some ground beef. Evie licked her lips, sniffing heavily as she leaned toward the cart. Uma pulled on the leash a bit, trying to get her attention and pull her back to acting her part. Evie blinked, regaining control over herself as she tried to avoid looking at the food.

They continued through, going around the middle areas with turkeys and hams, and they headed toward the produce area. Mal took a bunch of bananas and she then turned to get some apples.

“Get a cantaloupe, okay? They’re on the other side of this shelf, I think,” Mal told her, and Uma rolled her eyes, but complied nonetheless.

Evie and Uma went around and started looking through the produce, trying to find their commissioned fruit.

“Hey, lady, are you blind?” someone suddenly questioned. Uma turned to face whoever had spoken, and to her chagrin, it was a nosy-looking little boy. He was staring at her carefully, and Uma resisted the urge to raise an eyebrow at his short stature combined with his rude words.

“Looks like it,” Uma shortly replied, keeping her gaze above the boy’s head.

“How can you tell? You can’t see,” he informed her, and Uma set her jaw as she allowed herself to stare the boy down through the cover that was provided by her current eyewear.

“It’s just like I can tell that you’re a snotty-nosed brat. I’m blind, not deaf,” Uma told him, and he blinked, mostly unbothered by her statement.

“Can I pet your dog?” he asked, already reaching his hand out before she even consented to it. Uma opened her mouth to say something, but before she could, Evie started to speak.

“I’m sorry, but you’re never supposed to touch a guide dog unless you ask its human counterpart first,” Evie expressed, and the boy’s hand immediately stopped in its journey to touch her furry head. He gaped at her blankly, and Evie gasped, realizing what she had done.

“Oh, I mean… Woof, woof!” Evie pretended to bark. The boy’s eyes went even wider, and he started to yell, running away as fast as he could from the pair. Uma couldn’t help but grin as she reached down to pet Evie’s head fondly.

“That’ll do,” Uma complimented, and Uma turned back to face the shelf, finally spotting a cantaloupe. Uma smiled as she plucked it from its place before her and walked with Evie back to Mal on the opposite side of the shelf.

“What else do we need to get?” Uma asked as she placed the cantaloupe in the cart. Mal took out her phone, pulling up the list as she pinpointed just what they needed next.

“Oreos,” Evie spoke suddenly. Uma shook her head as she dismissively rolled her eyes at the dog.

“Of all things, I don’t think we’re here for junk food,” Uma informed her shortly. However, Uma actually bothered to look down at Evie as she started to lean her weight against Uma’s hold a bit as she moved forward.

“Oreos,” Evie continued, and Mal looked away from her phone to see that Evie’s nose was moving furiously as she sniffed hard. Mal’s eyes widened as she realized just what a big problem they could have if Evie didn’t control herself right then. Oreos were Evie’s favorite snack ever, and with these current urges, she probably wouldn’t be able to resist going to them immediately.

Mal shoved her phone in her pocket and knelt down next to Evie.

“E, it might be Oreos. But we’re here to get you some good food to eat. Calm down before you get crazy again, okay?” Mal checked with her best friend. Evie blinked hard, pulling herself out of her temptation as she looked at Mal agonizingly.

“Okay, M. Thank you,” Evie expressed, and Mal patted her neck gently.

“You’re welcome,” Mal replied, standing up and continuing in her task.

However, none of the three could have prepared Evie to resist what she smelled and saw next. Evie’s head lifted up, her ears perked as she eagerly eyed a certain couple entering the grocery area far off from them. Evie’s tail started to wag at the speed of lightning as it started to slap Uma’s leg hard.

Uma looked down at Evie and followed the dog’s gaze. It was Jay and Audrey walking in. Audrey looked exceedingly uncomfortable, and Jay looked to be trying to make her feel better. Before Uma could say anything at all or ponder on this subject any further, Evie tore across the grocery area, one target in mind as she panted and whined excitedly.

“Evie, NO!!!” Uma yelled, and Mal looked up, realizing in horror what was going on, but Evie didn’t hear a word as she yanked Uma into a shelf. Uma didn’t have long to recover before Evie pulled her directly into a bin of oranges. Uma shook her head, trying to hold onto the bin, but Evie would not be deterred in her path.

Mal hurried behind them, watching as Audrey jumped on Jay in the midst of her pure, unadulterated fear of the dog that was rushing towards the two of them. Jay was trying to hold her up, but he didn’t have to do much besides stay balanced once Audrey had found her way around to his back and was clinging onto his body with her arms and legs.

Evie skidded to a stop in front of them, nosing Jay’s hand eagerly as she licked it once in her excitement. Jay raised an eyebrow, using one hand to pet Evie as he reached around with his other hand to hold onto one of Audrey’s legs as she held onto him in a smothering hold.

Uma stumbled against their cart, wrapping her hand around it firmly as she tried to regain her breath and her pride. Mal came hurrying over, grabbing Evie by her harness and holding her back from the two.

“Evie!” Mal huffed, shaking her head as she found herself somewhere between being irritated, embarrassed, and amused. In the end, after taking Uma’s appearance into account, she chose amused as she chuckled at the pirate captain.

“Yeah, yeah, laugh it up.”

“You should see yourself.”

“I can’t. I’m blind,” Uma deadpanned, and Mal just stared at her for a moment. Quickly, both Mal and Uma cracked up laughing. Evie, who had now returned from her dog-like mindset, started to laugh with them.

“Okay, moving on from this really weird joke that makes no sense, what is going on? And did you just call that dog Evie? And is that dog laughing?!” Jay barraged them with questions, Audrey barely peeking up and over his shoulder to view the scene before them.

Mal and Uma sobered after a few moments of trying to pull themselves together, and Mal looked at Jay with a raised eyebrow.

“Evie accidentally turned herself into a dog with my spell book,” Mal informed him. “And now we’ve lost the spell book somewhere at Auradon Prep.”

Jay gaped at Evie, wiping his hand from where she had licked him. Audrey hesitantly released her hold on Jay, placing her feet on the ground tentatively as she gazed at the three.

“How did you get her in Walmart?” Jay finally questioned, and Mal snorted at the weirdness of the question.

“Of all the things you could be asking right now, you picked that?” Mal asked, and Jay just shrugged, smirking at her lopsidedly. Mal returned it with a smile of her own. “I made Uma look like a blind person and Evie look like a guide dog.”

“Pretty crafty.”

“Dragged into the weirdest store invented, and now I’m nearly ran over by a darned dog that’s one of my friends in disguise!” Audrey cried, and Mal shifted her gaze to the fussy pink princess.

“So how did you get _her_ in Walmart?” Mal asked, pointing at Audrey who was now looking around the store as if something or someone was about to jump out and devour her whole.

“It was closest to home and I thought it’d be a good experience for her.”

“Jay, how could you think this would be good for anybody?! Haven’t you heard of those men in trench coats that come up out of absolutely nowhere and when you least expect it, fling their coats open, exposing all of their… nakedness,” Audrey shuddered, her body moving in a full shake at the very imagining of the phenomena.

“And haven’t you heard of me and my infamous fist? It was really popular with Coach and the Tourney team. I could beat up anybody who would dare do that to you,” Jay informed her, and Audrey still didn’t look entirely convinced.

“But not before my very eyes get violated by the horrors of the human body!” Jay just shook his head, kissing Audrey’s hair with a small chuckle as she leaned near him again.

“So, how are you taking this whole transformation thing?” Jay asked Evie, gazing down at her and raising an eyebrow as he spotted her trying to chew at the packaging of the Oreo cookie container in the cart. She froze, her eyes going wide as she looked at Jay. She swiftly pulled away from it with a small lick of her lips and a sideways glance toward the package.

“I’m doing okay. I could be better, though. I keep getting these dog urges that are super embarrassing, and sometimes get me into a ton of trouble,” Evie told him. Jay nodded.

“I can see how that’d be a problem,” Jay replied, and Evie looked at the Oreos longingly.

“Can I have some Oreos? I really want Oreos… I love Oreos, M,” Evie informed her best friend, looking back at Mal as her tail thumped against the floor in that perpetual wag that she had.

“Yes, I know, Evie. It’s really not a good idea, though. I don’t know if it’s okay for dogs to eat.”

Evie whined before looking at Jay and Audrey, her eyes and entire expression suddenly looking so much more pitiful as she tried to draw sympathy for her plight. Jay just shook his head, negating her silent request, and Audrey offered her a somewhat regretful look.

Audrey’s gaze drifted upward as she looked at Uma. She furrowed her brow, recognizing the sunglasses that Uma was wearing.

“What- are those my sunglasses?!” Audrey demanded. Uma offered her a crooked smile, her teeth showing just barely as she chuckled.

“I don’t know.”

“Yes, you do, you’re not blind,” Audrey pointed out in a no-nonsensical tone.

“I can’t know.”

“Yes, you can, you’re not blind,” Audrey shot back, growing more irritated by the minute.

“Really, I can’t see how they’re yours,” Uma told her simply, and the faerie and the pirate captain launched into another bout of loud laughter.

“YOU’RE NOT BLIND!!!”


	6. Of Bland Food and Shedding

“What is this?” Evie questioned, looking up at Mal as she tilted her head with her eyes conveying just how unimpressed she was despite her cheery voice.

“Carlos’ recipe with ground beef and rice,” Mal informed her, smiling at her best friend sympathetically. Evie winced and sniffed carefully at the stuff sitting before her.

Uma had officially left the two to give Harry and Gil a firm talking-to so that she could perhaps convince them to behave themselves. Mal certainly didn’t envy them right about now, and she knew that Uma was likely chewing them out at this very moment.

Evie looked up at Mal somewhat distrustfully but took a big bite out of the food sitting before her and swallowed it hard. She coughed painfully afterward, her ears tucking back against her head flatly.

“M, it’s so dry, and there’s absolutely no grease to make it taste any better!”

“That’s supposed to be what’s so healthy about it,” Mal told the dog. Evie rolled her lip up at the disgustingly bland taste of the food and moved her snout over to drink some of the water. She stuck her mouth into the liquid and found that she couldn’t drink it at all like she was trying to.

“I can’t drink!” Evie cried, freaked out a bit as she desperately attempted to suck in the water.

“Evie, use your tongue to slurp it into your mouth. Like dogs do,” Mal instructed, and Evie hesitantly stuck her tongue out of her mouth, dipping it into the water as she chose to trust Mal.

Before long, the instincts of the dog dominated, and she started to lap at the water swiftly. Mal raised an eyebrow and kept quiet as Evie happily drank.

“Ahh, that’s a relief,” Evie finally spoke. After a moment, she looked to her food with trepidation. Evie sighed, somewhat dramatically deciding that she had to eat it despite its tastelessness.

Evie took a deep breath, preparing herself, before hastily gobbling the food as fast as she could manage.

“It’s so dry,” Evie whined, repeating her complaint from earlier. Mal just shrugged, communicating her helplessness in the situation.

When Evie was finally done, she drank the remainder of the water in her bowl.

“Okay, M. I was a good girl. Now I need my Oreos,” Evie informed her expectantly, looking up at Mal patiently as she waited for her chocolatey treat.

Mal winced, realizing that she was going to have to break the news to Evie. Carlos had just texted her a few minutes ago about all of the toxic and unhealthy ingredients and foods for dogs.

“I’m sorry, but I can’t do that…”

“Why not?” Evie asked innocently, her ears laying back against her head as her eyes grew a little bit wide. Mal suddenly felt her insides clench at having to deny her best friend of her most favorite dessert food ever. However, she kept reminding herself, it was for Evie’s own good.

“Chocolate is toxic for dogs,” Mal hesitantly told the dog sitting before her so prettily. Evie’s eyes widened ridiculously as she took in this horrible, truly awful, terrible news.

“What about the inside of them?” Evie asked hopefully, her gaze lifting as she tried to find some part of the Oreo that she could eat. Mal shook her head, silently negating Evie’s request.

“What about the outside of them?”

“Evie, that’s the chocolate part of them, and you know it,” Mal informed her. Evie then slowly sunk to the floor, her chin resting on the tile in the midst of her sadness and disbelief.

Mal sighed, reaching over and stroking Evie’s head and the back of her neck comfortingly.

“Don’t worry, E, you’ll be back to normal soon,” Mal assured her hopefully. Evie let out a breath deeply as she fully lamented the loss of her normal eating habits with a pitiful whimper.

Mal rubbed her ears lovingly in an attempt to pull her from her sadness, and Evie slightly tilted her head into the gesture in spite of herself. Mal smiled at her before her phone suddenly buzzed in her pocket.

The faerie withdrew it to check if it was Ben. Earlier that day before the entire fiasco with the spell book, Evie, Mal, and Ben were supposed to go and make a routine check upon a certain part of the kingdom. However, since the spell book was stolen, Mal and Evie left Ben to go and take care of the social call while they cared for the more imminent issue.

“ _I’m going to be spending the night at a hotel. The visit took longer than expected, so I’ll be getting home tomorrow morning_ ,” Ben had texted her. Mal smiled softly, happy to hear from him.

“ _Okay. Be safe, and don’t stop at any super cozy ones with old twins running it_ ,” Mal texted back with a chuckle to herself, referencing the issue that her and the girls had run into during their grand trip that they had taken when they headed for the beach.

“ _Don’t worry, I won’t. I love you_!”

“ _I love you, too_!” Mal responded before putting her phone back in its place.

“Who was it?” Evie questioningly mumbled. Mal placed her hand back on Evie’s ear as she knelt on the kitchen floor.

“It was Ben. The visit took longer than he expected, so he’s going to get back in the morning,” Mal informed her, rubbing her silky fur gently.

“Did you tell him about the situation?” Evie asked, and Mal stopped in her petting, sighing as she considered Evie’s question and moved her hand back onto her lap. Evie widened one eye in a way that mimicked a raise of an eyebrow as she looked up at Mal, unimpressed with Mal’s sudden pause.

“No, I didn’t. I thought it’d be better if we broached that subject when we were face-to-face,” Mal explained. Evie huffed in slight frustration, nosing Mal’s hand in an attempt to regain her attention.

Mal smiled at the dog before giving her one last stroke on the head. She then stood up, stretching as she thought of what they could do to pass the time. Evie sat up with her, looking at Mal curiously. Mal looked at the clock. It was too early to go to bed, but it was too late to go anywhere.

She happened to glance at the television and remembered a movie that she had been aiming to watch. She just hadn’t had the time. So, she decided that now could be the time to indulge.

“Hey, E, you want to watch a movie?” Mal questioned, and Evie’s ears perked as she looked considerably happier.

“Sure. What’s it about?” Mal started toward the sofa and the television so that she could get the DVD and put it in the player.

“It’s something called Jumanji and I think it’s about kids getting sucked into a video game? Maybe? I just heard Jay singing its praises, and I thought I’d try it out.”

“Sounds good to me,” Evie spoke, and she strode over to the couch, hopping onto it effortlessly.

Mal started the DVD, and she plopped down on the couch with Evie.

After just a moment, however, Mal noticed something that was quite disturbing. There on her newly bought sofa, there were various short gray hairs peppering its pretty black surface. Mal furrowed her brow, not pleased with the fact that Evie was covering her new couch in dog hair.

So, Mal stood up and headed toward her bedroom where she picked up a plethora of pillows and headed back to the living room. She dropped them all on the rug there just before the sofa and she gestured at it, looking at Evie.

“What?” Evie questioned, not understanding what Mal was getting at.

“You’re shedding,” Mal informed her shortly, and Evie furrowed her brow, looking down at the pillow pile and then back up at Mal. She sat up, gazing at the couch.

“I really don’t think there’s that many hairs. Besides, I’m a human,” Evie informed her. Mal sighed, just looking at Evie in hopes that she would have mercy on Mal’s poor couch. Mal really hated to make her get down, but she just didn’t want her and Ben’s new couch all messed up.

After a moment of holding Mal’s gaze, Evie very slowly and very hesitantly stepped down from the sofa and onto the pillows, sighing deeply as she rested on them carefully.

“Thank you, Evie,” Mal sincerely expressed before laying down on her stomach on the couch.

She then reached her arm down so that she could pet Evie’s head. Evie sighed, enjoying the feel of her ears being rubbed. They both settled in to watch the movie.

However, after around twenty minutes into the movie, Evie started moving closer to the couch, edging just slightly over in an attempt to avoid detection. It was Evie’s conviction that she belonged on that couch with her best friend, not on a bunch of pillows like some kind of dog.

Never mind the fact that before this, she would have easily lay down on the floor on a bunch of pillows without any complaint and plenty relaxed as long as someone was messing with her hair as they were now. It was the principle of the thing. She did not belong on the floor just because she was in a dog’s body and supposedly shed.

Evie then moved just a little closer to the couch, her shoulder pressing against it as she surreptitiously eyed Mal to ensure that she wasn’t catching on to Evie’s plan. Fortunately, Mal didn’t appear to be, and instead, her eyelids were increasingly droopy as she watched the movie, fully comfortable.

When Mal’s eyelids had nearly shut, Evie chose that moment to jump back onto the couch. She leapt upon it with a bit more force than she had aimed and landed on Mal purely accidentally. Mal jumped up, her eyes wide as her gaze met Evie’s.

Evie just looked at her with a big, guilty grin. However, she had no intention of moving her behind from the couch. Mal groaned, trying to sit up as Evie fully squished her.

“E, could you move, please?!” Mal asked, and Evie shook her head, deciding to lay down even more on the girl. She allowed her weight to just fall dead so that it would be nearly impossible to get her off the couch.

“You’re going to cover the couch in hair!” Mal cried, but Evie just snuggled in further, closing her eyes in her determination to stay on the couch like the human that she actually was.

“M, I’m not a dog, so I’m staying right here.”

“But you shed like one!”

Mal kept trying for a few more moments to get Evie off of her and at least on the other side of the couch, but Evie didn’t give up. Mal finally sighed, allowing Evie to stay as the faerie got comfortable. Mal resisted the urge to groan as she begrudgingly brought a hand up to pet the dog.

“See? That wasn’t so bad. Besides, I’m mostly lying on you so the couch shouldn’t be that hairy. It’ll just be on you.”

“Joy, joy.”

“You know you love me!” Evie announced happily, her tail wagging as she grinned at her sister. Mal sighed, shaking her head, but finally agreeing.

“Yeah, I’ll keep you around,” Mal joked as she offered Evie a fond smile, resting her hand on the dog as she turned her head to watch the movie.

Evie rested her head on Mal’s stomach gently as she sleepily eyed the television. Before long, she noticed Mal’s breaths falling more evenly and heavily, signifying her unconsciousness, and Evie felt her own eyelids droop heavily. She sighed, allowing her eyes to close as she rested on her best friend.

A lot of things had happened that day. However, she had certainly not yet seen the worst of being a dog.


	7. You're Not A Saint Bernard!

Evie slowly came into consciousness, her eyes fluttering open as she nestled against her best friend upon the sofa. The charcoal lab wagged her tail slightly, resisting the initial urge to lick Mal’s peaceful, sleeping face. She stretched one hind leg out luxuriously as she yawned enormously, gaining her wits about her.

Evie furrowed her brow as she realized that she needed to pee. The urge was thankfully not too needful at that moment, and it was surely not a problem. After all, she had seen dogs on the internet that used the toilet like humans.

The dog gently stepped around Mal and down onto the floor carefully. Her nails clicked across the floor as she reached the door leading into the bathroom. Evie tilted her head to the side as she realized the door was shut which successfully served to keep any four-legged creatures from entering.

She looked up at the door handle, noticing that it simply required a downward force to open. Evie carefully stood up on her back legs, very worried that she might fall backwards, and she placed her paws on the door as she allowed them to pull down on the handle.

It opened easily, and Evie pawed it open a bit more so that she could fit between the doorway and the door. Evie padded though, peering at the porcelain throne that was now even with her chest. Evie looked down into the clear water of the toilet and she suddenly felt overwhelmingly thirsty.

She backed up a bit, aiming to go out and check her water bowl that Mal had placed for her. However, before she could keep this line of thought in mind, her legs seemed to operate for her, and her mind was completely boggled by the one basic need to drink.

After an indefinite amount of time, Evie’s senses finally returned to her and she froze as she realized her tongue was halfway submerged in toilet water.

She quickly pulled her head from the toilet, nearly falling on her behind in her haste to get away from the positively disgusting water bowl that her dog instincts had deemed worthy to drink from.

Evie hurried toward the door, accidentally ramming her head into it in the midst of her hurrying. She yelped shortly, but quickly pushed her way out of the bathroom as she hurried to Mal, determined to get the taste out of her mouth as swiftly as she could.

She quickly strode over to the couch and placed her front feet upon the edge of it, looking down at the faerie.

“Mal? Mal?!” Evie whispered loudly, trying to get the other girl’s attention in a gentle manner. When that didn’t work, she pawed at her arm gently, hoping that it would shake Mal awake.

However, that still was not a successful endeavor, so Evie stopped and stared at the purple-haired girl in an attempt to decipher how she was going to awaken her. Before she could really control herself, the very obvious dog urge to lick her face took over and Evie found herself sticking her nasty, unsanitary, toilet germ covered tongue onto Mal’s cheek.

Mal quickly awoke at the feel of a wet tongue on her face. She pulled back from Evie, wiping her face with the back of her hand.

“Jeez, E, what a way to wake somebody. What’re you doing?” Mal asked as Evie pulled back from her, her eyes wide in bewilderment as she stared at Mal in complete horror as she thought of what she had done completely accidentally and totally against her will.

“Nothing, nothing at all! I definitely didn’t just drink out of the toilet and then lick your face!” Evie cried, still disbelieving of what she had done, and trying to convince herself that it didn’t happen. Mal’s jaw slackened as she truly considered what sort of germs had gotten on her face.

“That is disgusting!” Mal finally exclaimed, practically jumping off of the couch as she hurried around to go to the bathroom and presumably wash her face. Evie swiftly trotted behind her, aiming on getting her mouth cleaned of this revolting toilet water.

Mal pushed the door open and she grabbed a cloth before wetting it and lathering the soap bar firmly. Mal then furiously started to wipe at her cheek.

Evie sat patiently, waiting for Mal to finish so she could present her request that Mal help her clean her mouth out.

The entire time that she had spent with the germs in her mouth, she hadn’t swallowed even once. And it was beginning to rear its ugly head.

Evie looked down at the floor, realizing suddenly that there was a puddle of wetness on the floor. She furrowed her brow, wondering where it was coming from. After a minute, Evie realized that there was only one place that it could be coming from. The dog’s eyes widened as she brought a paw up to wipe at her snout. She nearly felt like fainting when she realized that there was a fresh coating of drool covering her paw.

“Mal!” Evie cried out, and Mal turned toward her with her face covered in soap. She winced in disgust, turning away from Evie quickly in favor of dealing with her own problems.

“Fix it!” Evie whined as Mal rinsed out her cloth and wiped her face thoroughly. Mal finally toweled her face try before moving herself to gaze at Evie once again.

She shook her head in pure revulsion at the drool, and Evie scooted a bit closer to her.

Mal reached over and took some toilet paper, wadding it thoroughly in her hands and tentatively wiping at Evie’s jowls. She then dropped the soaked paper in the garbage can.

“Okay… That’s done,” Mal spoke, starting to turn and go out the door. However, Evie quickly moved in front of her, keeping her from moving any further.

“Mal, I need my mouth cleaned!” Evie expressed. Mal sighed, shaking her head.

“E, what do you want me to do?”

“Some mouthwash would be a good start,” Evie informed her with a smile. Mal rolled her eyes at Evie’s ridiculousness.

“Dogs can’t use mouthwash,” Mal pointed out, and Evie furrowed her brow before a renewed vigor entered her stance as she looked at Mal hopefully.

“Brush my teeth, then,” Evie suggested, and Mal just eyed her strangely.

“How? I don’t have a toothbrush for-”

“Please! I need these germs out!” Evie cried dramatically as she lurched forward and pressed her chest against Mal’s knees. Mal held her hands out in a placating gesture, knowing that Evie wasn’t going to give up until she had her way about cleaning her mouth.

Mal considered her choices. The room that Evie lived in when she spent nights at the castle was downstairs, and Mal had just gotten up and didn’t feel like going all the way down there to get it. So, option one was definitely out of the question. Mal most certainly wasn’t going to let Evie use her toothbrush.

Therefore, there was only one more logical choice.

Mal mentally apologized to Ben as she withdrew his toothbrush from the cabinet and looked it over. Evie excitedly watched her every move, just waiting for the glorious feel of cleanliness in her mouth.

Mal applied the toothpaste to the brush and she knelt down in front of the dog. Evie bared her teeth immediately, giving Mal access to her teeth. Mal raised an eyebrow as she started to brush them. It was truly amazing that the transformation had successfully kept Evie’s sparkling white teeth despite the fact that so many other things about her had changed.

Mal worked around the dog’s shiny row of teeth carefully before Evie’s jaw suddenly dropped open.

“Get on the tongue and in the gums,” Evie instructed, her words barely intelligible as she tried to speak with her mouth wide open. Mal complied with her request, scrubbing the insides of her mouth gently.

Mal then rinsed the toothbrush and filled a nearby cup with water so that Evie could stick her mouth in it and rid herself of some of the toothpaste foam. As soon as Mal held it where Evie could reach, she stuck her snout in, wiggling it a bit before withdrawing it swiftly.

Mal nodded to her, pouring the contents of the cup out.

Evie watched the water move out of the cup, and it suddenly occurred to her that she really needed to use the bathroom. Evie then turned to the toilet, determined to conquer it this time. She placed her paws on the seat, trying to hoist herself up. As soon as Mal realized what the dog was doing, she grabbed Evie’s side, pulling her down from the toilet.

“Woah, woah, what the heck are you doing?”

“I’m using the toilet.”

“Dogs can’t use the toilet, E.”

“I saw some dogs online that could do it. And I’m human anyway, so I’ve got double the chances to be able to do it,” Evie proudly proclaimed to Mal as she tried to climb back up it once again.

“Yeah, I think you’re going to fall in. C’mon, we’re going outside,” Mal informed her, pulling at Evie as she tried to drag her out of the bathroom.

“I am not going out in front of everybody to use the bathroom!”

“Evie, no one’s even going to look! You’re a dog doing your business outside! Nobody’s going to care!” Mal exclaimed in pure exasperation, and Evie pulled harder against her sister’s force.

“But I care!”

“Would you come on?!” Mal grunted as Evie’s feet slipped just a bit on the floor as she struggled for traction. Mal yanked against her, trying to fight against the dog’s force.

“Work with me!” Mal demanded in frustration, but Evie still fought her despite the faerie’s best efforts to the contrary. Mal finally stopped in her pulling and just sat there on the ground, holding onto the dog.

“Look, would you rather fall in the nasty toilet water and me give you a bath or would you rather go outside like a normal dog and do your business behind a tree or something?” Mal asked her, growing quite irritated at Evie indeed. The charcoal lab stopped in her struggling for a moment as she considered the possibilities.

After a few moments, she sighed, nodding in begrudging acceptance. After all, she would much rather go out and be done quickly rather than going through the embarrassment of being bathed.

The two got up from the floor and left the bathroom where Mal grabbed Evie’s harness and her leash. Evie was still sporting her collar proudly, or at least as proudly as she could considering the inevitable humiliation surrounding her current state.

Mal slipped Evie’s legs through the harness and clipped the leash to her. Before long, they were outside and looking for a place that was secluded enough for Evie to feel like she was okay to do her business.

“No, this can’t work,” Evie decidedly asserted as she looked at a bunch of bushes. Mal huffed, exasperated as she held the end of Evie’s leash.

“Well, you’ve got to pick somewhere to go,” Mal informed her offhandedly.

“Mal, this can’t work because I don’t want to be invaded by bugs crawling through the bushes.”

Mal wordlessly allowed Evie to lead her a bit further across the lawn until she came to a large tree that would successfully block any passersby’s view of Evie. Evie looked around carefully, ensuring that absolutely no one was looking.

“Can you stand guard for me?” Evie requested. Mal nodded quietly, mostly thankful that Evie had settled on a place to go to the bathroom.

Mal leaned against the side of the tree, looking around the yard as she tried to keep an eye out for anyone that could be coming by.

To her surprise, she spotted a jogger on the sidewalk, running along and minding his own business. After a moment, he turned his head and happened to see her. He inevitably slowed a bit. After all, it wasn’t every day that one saw the queen of Auradon just leaning against a tree out in the middle of the royal lawn.

Mal realized she was going to have to say something when he kept staring, so she raised her voice to be better heard.

“Don’t worry! I’m just guarding the dog while she does her business!” Mal informed him and he offered a thumbs-up before continuing in his run.

“Mal!”

“Sorry!”

A few more moments passed, and Evie suddenly spoke up, a concerned tone to her voice as she got Mal’s attention.

“Mal, we have a problem,” Evie informed her, and Mal started to turn around, but Evie was suddenly by her side.

“What is it?”

“Well, you know how dogs do what they have to do when they have to do it without any discretion about what and when?” Evie asked her, and Mal furrowed her brow, thinking for a moment as she tried to decipher Evie’s complicated dancing around the subject.

After only a moment, it occurred to her precisely what had happened.

“Evie, you didn’t.”

“Yeah, I wasn’t aiming on it,” Evie quickly and awkwardly informed her, and Mal smacked her forehead.

“How am I supposed to pick it up?!” Mal exasperatedly questioned her, and Evie furrowed her brow in thought before offering Mal a conspiratorial smile.

“See, that’s the funny thing. This is what I was thinking: what if you didn’t? What if you just let it all float away?”

“That can’t possibly work. There’re cameras, and I could get caught. I’m pretty sure there’s a fine for not picking up your dog’s-”

“Yeah, but you’re Queen,” Evie informed her quickly, a grin on her face.

“Exactly! How bad would it look if the Queen didn’t pick up after her own dog?” Mal frustratedly pointed out to the dog standing there beside her.

“Well, how would you hypothetically pick it up if we were actually going to do that which we aren’t?” Evie questioned, and Mal narrowed her eyes, considering what she could do.

“Okay, it’s going to be super embarrassing for you, but I’ve got an idea,” Mal informed her shortly before she hurried into the castle, Evie quick behind her.

By hook or crook, Mal ended up getting a baggy and a pooper-scooper from Carlos’ room. Unfortunately, Carlos had actually locked his door that day, so it was a long and grueling process looking for a key, but Mal did eventually find one.

The two girls finally got back outside, and Evie kept her back turned with her leash’s end next to her as Mal headed behind the tree.

“Good grief, E, you’re not a dang Saint Bernard!” Mal suddenly exclaimed, and Evie laid her ears back. Evie’s face was so hot that she was sure it would have been positively glowing if she were still a human.

“Be a little quieter, okay?!” Evie demanded, freaking out a little as she looked around in complete paranoia that someone might come up out of nowhere.

“Seriously, this is killing me!” Mal informed her, only a bit quieter. Evie huffed in frustrated embarrassment.

“Do you recall who always clogged the toilet back at Auradon Prep?” Evie asked her accusingly, and Mal laughed shortly.

“You do not want to get into this. Do you remember who shed all over the place last night? Also, do you remember who always put hair in the food when we had takeout and she put it on plates?”

Evie just grunted in response, deciding she didn’t have a good comeback for that one. They both knew each other inside out and it was never wise to get in one of these competitions because Mal would always win since Evie would always hesitate to let loose with Mal’s most embarrassing habits while Mal would willingly and eagerly pronounce Evie’s. Of course, not in front of other people.

Evie sighed as she watched the road, wishing this would already get over and they could move on to something else.

However, something else did come. It came in the form of a moped coming down the street. Evie raised up, her eyes trained upon it as her ears perked up. She could feel a certain exhilaration begin to take over her form and her muscles tensed in anticipation.

It was then that she took off toward the moped at full speed, her leash flying behind her as her human mind was completely replaced by canine instinct.


	8. The Accident

Uma was out for her morning jog. After all, she had to stay fit if she was going to keep up her status as the Captain of the Guard.

So Uma ran down the sidewalk, relaxed as she spent her time alone. She would’ve gotten company if she could have, though. It was just that she knew Harry and Gil liked to sleep in, so she didn’t bother them in their bunk beds. Uma also knew that no one else really wanted to go for a jog that early if they didn’t have to. She thought about getting Evie from Mal so that the dog could get some exercise, but she decided against it since she didn’t know if Mal or Evie were the kind of people that liked sleeping forever.

Of course, she enjoyed time alone. In fact, she didn’t get nearly enough of it. There was an insurmountable amount of times that she would have liked to have been alone instead with company.

Uma looped around the edge of the castle, crossing the back side of it as she approached the edge of the left expansion of lawn. She furrowed her brow as a moped suddenly passed her. The person waved at her emphatically and she slowed just a bit, offering a wave in return despite the fact that she didn’t know this person from Adam’s housecat.

Of course, that gosh-awful blue and gold suit was painfully familiar… After only a moment, it fully occurred to her that it was Ben once he had passed her. Uma rolled her eyes fondly at the goofy King, watching as he flipped up his visor on his helmet to grin at her. Uma waved at him a little more enthusiastically as he sped ahead.

However, once he was a good ways away from her, but not so far that she couldn’t see him, she spotted a gray streak taking off across the yard, presumably a dog.

Uma jogged a little faster, aiming to yell at the dog to perhaps keep it from chasing the moped.

However, it was much too fast for her to even begin to hope to get closer to, and it jumped to the side of the moped before suddenly rolling in front of the vehicle with a loud yelp as Ben came to a screeching stop before he hit it.

Uma paused, her heart stopping as she was able to get a better look at the dog.

“Oh, please don’t let that be our dog,” Uma whispered underneath her breath, watching with her eyes wide as the dog suddenly started to scream very human-like and talk exceedingly loudly and quickly. Uma shook her head.

“That’s our dog, dangit!” Uma cried before taking off as fast as she could toward the wreck.

As Uma grew closer, she spotted Mal shooting across the yard in the same path Evie took, her feet flying swiftly across the lawn. Ben had dismounted his moped and he was leaning down next to the dog, his arms and hands outstretched as he tried to figure out what to do while simultaneously completely freaking out.

Mal reached the two faster than Uma, and she almost fell on her knees in her haste to get beside Evie. Uma finally reached them, and was able to hear the conversation that ensued.

“Mal, I hit the poor dog! I’m so sorry! Poor dog! Poor, poor dog!” Ben shouted hysterically, and Uma was mostly sure that he hadn’t even registered the fact that the dog was talking and that it was actually Evie.

“Mal, my paw, my paw, my paw!” Evie whimpered and cried, her breaths labored as she panicked fully.

“I know, I know. Calm down, it’s going to be okay,” Mal assured her, but Uma noticed the slight waver in her voice. Uma slid past Ben as he rambled on about the poor dog and how he was so terribly sorry, kneeling down beside the dog carefully as she tried to inspect the situation more closely and perhaps diffuse it a bit.

Mal looked up at the pirate captain, her eyes flashing with a terrible fear and Uma honestly couldn’t blame her in the least. Uma offered reassurance and steadiness in her gaze, attempting to ground Mal so that she wouldn’t freak Evie out worse. Mal took several deep breaths, before nodding to Uma.

Uma then gently laid her hands on Evie’s side and back, feeling for any injuries. However, it soon came to her that she honestly couldn’t judge if anything was hurting because of Evie’s constant whimpers and occasional yelps.

Uma placed her hand on Evie’s head, leaning down a bit as she tried to get the dog’s attention.

“Hey, look, I need you to stop panicking, okay? I can’t help you unless you’re quiet, okay?” Uma instructed gently, but Evie just barely glanced at her to acknowledge her presence, her steady whines remaining. Uma sighed, knowing that Evie was completely and absolutely terrified.

Mal took Evie’s cheeks in her hands, looking the dog in the eyes as she caught her gaze.

“Evie, look at me,” Mal commanded, and after a bit more struggling and a few more cries, Evie’s stare settled on Mal, her body shaking as she gazed at her best friend.

“Calm down, alright?”

“It hurts, Mal, it hurts,” Evie cried, and Ben had actually stopped in his pacing as he calmed just enough to pay attention to the fact that the dog was talking. His eyes went wide as he gaped at the scene.

“I know, I know. You’re fine, though. You’re going to be fine.”

“Are you sure? It hurts, it really hurts,” Evie pitifully repeated, and Mal could see that there was more fear in her eyes than pain.

“I’m sure. I know your paw hurts, but we need to make sure that nothing else is hurting, alright?” Mal reassuringly spoke, pressing her nose to Evie’s as she kept the dog’s attention.

“Just breathe with me, okay?” Mal told her gently, and Evie complied. She breathed in and out carefully, synchronizing with Mal as she resisted the urge to cry out.

Uma looked at the two of them carefully before gently laying her hands on the dog. Evie immediately jerked in fear, but Mal kept a firm hold on her head, running her blunt fingernails through the fur of Evie’s cheeks. Uma kept her hands on the dog, stroking gently before applying just a bit more pressure along the ribs and the back.

Evie didn’t make a sound but remained shaking a bit as she lay there.

Uma took that as a good sign, so she started very gently running her hands down Evie’s hips before applying more pressure.

Uma soon had covered her entire body except for that one paw, and she came to an assessment.

“She’s okay. Her paw has something going on, but she’s fine otherwise as far as I can tell. I’m pretty sure she would’ve made noise if it hurt anywhere else,” Uma spoke, vocally reassuring what everyone could have conjectured from just watching or feeling in Evie’s case.

Nevertheless, Mal let out a sigh of relief before pulling away from Evie gently and looking up at Ben.

He was staring at them in something between confusion, guilt, and fear as his hands shook pitifully. Uma gestured her head at him before petting Evie gently and trying to coax her to sit up at least a little.

Mal stood up and approached him, taking his trembling hands in her own and squeezing them.

“Hey, it’s okay. She’s okay,” Mal assured him and he looked between Mal and the dog that was starting to very barely and slowly sit up so that she could perhaps eventually stand.

“What’s going on, Mal? Why is that dog talking? And why does it sound like Evie? And… I’m _so_ confused right now,” he informed her honestly with a shaky sigh. Mal just brought him into a firm hug, holding him gently against her. He let out a breath as he squeezed her in return.

She pulled away after a few minutes when she was sure that he was mostly calm. Sure enough, he seemed much more grounded and less hysteric as he eyed the dog that was now sitting on the pavement.

“Evie accidentally turned herself into a dog with my spell book that Celia stole from me. Evie’s been having a ton of really frustrating, really embarrassing dog urges that cause her to do things that she normally would never do. It seems to make her totally forget everyone and everything around her in favor of how a dog would react,” Mal informed him slowly yet thoroughly and he nodded before suddenly gaining a renewed guilt in his expression.

“You mean I ran over Evie?!” Ben cried, and Mal opened her mouth to say something before Uma interjected.

“Yeah, you sure did,” Uma immediately answered as she eyed Evie sympathetically. Ben ran a hand through his hair, his mind completely blown as he approached the charcoal lab and knelt in front of her.

Evie brought her eyes to Ben’s and smiled slightly. Ben offered her a sorrowful look.

“Evie, I am so sorry,” he apologized, and Evie shook her head.

“It’s okay. I know you didn’t mean to. This stupid dog form is what’s to blame,” Evie told him. He looked down at the pavement before a slobbery dog tongue met his nose swiftly.

He looked back up at her with a slight wince, wiping it from his nose with a sleeve. Evie’s ears laid back as she ashamedly avoided his gaze.

“Sorry…”

“It’s alright,” Ben quickly replied, hesitantly reaching out and patting her neck.

“Wait a minute, didn’t you leave in a limo?” Mal asked, and Ben nodded with a slight smile, despite his ultimately nervous disposition at this point.

“I did, but it started acting weird, so I left it at a mechanic shop where I borrowed this moped,” Ben told them, and Mal nodded, taking this in.

“Alright, you two, enough messing around. We need to get her to the vet,” Uma announced as she stood up. All semblances of calm immediately left Evie in favor of intense horror. Evie’s eyes went wide as she shot up on all fours. However, she quickly yelped and stumbled a bit when her front leg bore weight upon it.

“No, no, no, no, that’s not necessary,” Evie emphatically expressed to them with a slight chuckle, and Mal could see how nervous the dog was. Mal sighed, kneeling down and looking at her sister. Evie whined as she scooted closer, and Mal wasted no time in reaching up and petting the side of Evie’s neck.

“Evie, you have to get looked at so that your paw doesn’t heal wrong and cause complications with your hand when you turn back into a human,” Mal informed her gently, and Evie scooted closer, resting her chin on Mal’s shoulder. Mal wrapped her arms around the dog gently, hugging her fully for the first time that she had been a dog.

After a moment, Mal had to pull away, and she looked at Ben regretfully. Evie lowered her head, knowing what was to come. Ben leaned down and wrapped his arms around Evie carefully, lifting her up.

Mal offered Evie a gentle stroke on the cheek and Uma ran a hand down her back before leading the four toward Uma’s vehicle.

When they reached Uma’s large seafoam Hummer, Uma opened the back door, climbing up in it and spreading a blanket across the backseat before backing out.

“Oh… This is just like New Year’s, isn’t it?” Evie asked, and Uma shook her head, rolling her eyes as Ben placed Evie in the back on the blanket gently.

“Yeah, no. This isn’t like New Year’s at all,” Uma told her shortly. “At New Year’s, y’all were in the wrong iced tea and lots of crap happened.”

Evie just rested her head on the blanket covered seat and chose not to answer. Mal climbed up in the back with Evie and sat down next to her while Ben and Uma sat in the front.

Once Uma cranked the car, they started out, heading for the veterinarian.


	9. I Have Been Violated!

Ben carried Evie carefully inside the veterinarian’s office, her injured foot dangling below her safely so that she didn’t have to touch the ground and hurt it further. Ben nodded to Mal and Uma before heading over to a nearby chair to sit down with Evie in his lap. The two girls continued ahead, approaching the desk where the receptionist was seated and typing on her computer.

The receptionist at first didn’t pay any attention to them, and Mal patiently waited for a few moments. However, when it became apparent that the lady obviously wasn’t going to listen any time soon, Uma cleared her throat with an eyebrow raise, successfully drawing the woman from her attentions dedicated to the computer.

“Hello- Queen Mal!” the woman gasped, immediately gathering herself to her feet and attempting a curtsy. Uma rolled her eyes, and Mal resisted the urge to laugh at the ridiculousness of the sight of the lady dressed in her vet help wear trying to be royal. Mal shook her head, waving her hand in an attempt to get the woman to stop.

“Don’t worry, no need for that. I just need some help with my pet,” Mal told her, sending a careful glance in Evie’s direction to gauge her reaction. Uma just huffed, completely unimpressed with the lack of attention to the fact that she was Captain of the Guard.

Due to her enhanced listening abilities as a result of her new form, Evie had indeed heard Mal’s statement, and she was glaring at her with indignance as she regarded the faerie. Mal shrugged at her, throwing a hand up. Honestly, what was she supposed to say? That the big charcoal-colored Labrador that the King was holding was really the Royal Advisor turned into a pooch?

Mal knew she couldn’t keep the secret, but it was still easier to just wait for Evie to speak and consequentially explain the situation rather than trying to tell the lady right up front.

“Of course, your majesty! How can I help you?” the receptionist concernedly addressed her, poised and ready to help in any way she could.

“Y’know, I am here, too,” Uma proclaimed as she glared at the other two girls. The woman barely glanced at Uma, and instead kept her starstruck gaze upon Mal. Mal shot Uma a warning glance before bringing her eyes back to the woman. Mal then smiled gratefully and pointed behind her at Ben and Evie that were seated not too far off.

“That’s my dog Evie. She managed to get away from me and she chased my husband on his vehicle. He couldn’t-”

“It was a moped,” Uma supplied unhelpfully, and Mal closed her eyes, breathing out carefully before continuing.

“He couldn’t avoid her, and he accidentally ran over her paw. I don’t know if it’s broken or not, but she can’t put any weight on it and I wanted to bring her here to help her if something is wrong,” Mal explained. The lady nodded her head as she actively typed away at her computer.

“ _Sure_ , that’s how it went,” Uma murmured wickedly, and Mal just glared at her in an attempt to get her to shut her mouth before they received any questions they didn’t need. Uma just grinned evilly as she enjoyed her attempts at embarrassing Ben even though he wasn’t close enough to hear. Maybe it was embarrassing Mal for Ben.

Since the drive to the veterinarian’s office, Uma had recovered from her graveness and utter fear for the dog upon realizing that she would be alright. Since then, she had tried to crack jokes and make light of the situation in an attempt to bring up everyone’s spirits.

Her attempts had indeed worked, and everyone seemed significantly less upset over the injury. Most of Evie’s anxiety was stemming from her fear of the vet, but Mal herself felt tons better knowing that it was only something wrong with the dog’s paw.

“Okay. Don’t worry, the doctor should be able to see you in just a moment. A nurse should come out in a few minutes and bring you back. For now, feel free to take a seat, or stand, or whatever you want to do!” the lady nervously told her, a big grin on her face as she addressed the young queen. Uma groaned before stalking off toward the other two members of their party. On the other hand, Mal smiled benevolently in response to the woman and left to go sit beside Ben and Evie.

Uma had plopped down on Ben’s other side and the side that was closest to the back of Evie, so Mal approached Ben’s other side and sat down. Evie immediately crawled over so that her chest and front legs were lying on Mal’s lap. Evie laid her head down on Mal’s leg with a sigh.

“M, I’m scared,” Evie quietly admitted with a sad whimper. Mal reassuringly petted the silky fur coating the back of Evie’s neck, scratching the skin beneath gently.

“Don’t worry, Evie, it’s okay. It’ll be okay,” Mal reassured her, stroking her back in a calming gesture. Evie’s tail was tucked firmly between her back legs that were resting on Ben’s lap and he awkwardly petted Evie’s back with Mal.

“You’ll live, that’s for sure,” Uma asserted in her oddly reassuring manner.

Mal looked at Ben sweetly, tilting her head to the side slightly when she saw the forlorn expression on his face. She furrowed her brow and pursed her lips at him.

“Stop,” Mal commanded, and he immediately looked at her guiltily.

“Mal, I just feel terrible for-”

“Ben, you didn’t mean to. It’s okay. This kind of stuff happens. You stopped before she could get seriously hurt,” Mal comforted, moving one of her hands from Evie and holding his hand instead.

“Yes, Ben, don’t worry about it. I shouldn’t have chased you. That was really stupid,” Evie regretfully told him, raising her dark silvery head from Mal so she could turn to look at Ben. Ben smiled at her and reached over to Evie to pet her head gently.

“It’s not your fault. You can’t help these new dog urges,” Ben chuckled fondly. Mal squeezed his hand firmly in her own.

“I think you’re off your rocker,” Uma announced as she looked at Mal, disturbed. “Since when were you so dang emotional and feeling?”

Mal rolled her eyes, opening her mouth to give her some sort of snarky response before Evie piped up for her.

“She always has been,” Evie explained lovingly as she looked up at the younger girl.

Suddenly a loud clang sounded nearby them. All four of them jumped and looked for the source of the sound, quickly spotting a woman standing nearby them.

An older nurse had approached them and her clipboard as well as pen clattered to the floor in the midst of her pure shock in staring at the active conversation that was circulating amongst three people and a dog. She was gaping at the four and her jaw was slack as nary a sound came from her.

Mal beamed none too genuinely in the midst of her slight embarrassment as a result of the somewhat unexpected encounter. Uma looked between the elderly lady and Mal. After the lady wouldn’t stop staring and her mouth was moving like a fish out of water, Uma decided to speak up.

“She’s a very voiceful dog,” Uma remarked with a small grin. Mal’s gaze immediately snapped to Uma’s. Uma just shrugged innocently.

The old nurse shook her head, the spell somewhat broken as she beckoned them with a hand.

“Talking dogs. Now I’ve seen everything,” the woman murmured underneath her breath as she shuffled in the direction of the examining rooms.

Mal eyed Ben with a somewhat humiliated expression and scooted Evie so that she was fully in his lap. He stood up carefully, Evie held securely in his arms as he straightened. Uma stood up beside him and petted Evie’s head comfortingly. They then walked together and followed the nurse toward the back of the building.

Before long, they reached the back where the weighing machine was located.

“Sit her down there,” the old woman instructed, stepping away as far as she could from the couple without being totally out of range.

Ben bent down and gently sat Evie on her three functioning legs. She stood carefully, one paw drew up off the ground and the weighing machine started to evaluate her. Against her will, Evie’s tail tucked itself between her legs in the midst of her fear and Mal instinctively wanted to surge forward and insist they take her off the scale.

However, after only a few seconds, it measured that she was sixty-five pounds. Uma snorted and Evie’s ridiculously wide gaze snapped to the pirate captain’s. Mal couldn’t help but chuckle a bit, too.

“How bad is it?” Evie questioned, and the nurse had to stop and stare for a little while longer, marveling at the wonder that was a talking dog.

“You’re sixty-five pounds,” Uma grinned wickedly while Mal couldn’t hardly hold in the laughs at the look on Evie’s face, and Evie rolled her eyes, throwing them both an unimpressed expression.

“I will have you know that is not fat for a dog of my size,” Evie grumbled, and Uma just kept that frustratingly smug smile on her face. The nurse marked the number on her clipboard before continuing down the hall. Ben lifted Evie gently and followed with Mal and Uma close behind.

“Alright, come in here and wait for the doctor. He should be with you quickly,” the old lady told them in her warbly voice, shutting the door behind her quietly. Ben, trying to hold back his labored breaths, placed Evie on the table with care. Mal walked over and took her place with Evie, Ben stepping back and resting in a nearby chair behind the dog.

“Having a hard time carrying big dog over there?” Uma questioned with a smirk, and Ben shook his head, chuckling slightly. Evie shot her a disdainful look but remained shaking just a bit. Mal sighed before conjuring a positive expression to perhaps make Evie feel at least a little better about the situation.

“See, E? It’s not that much different from a doctor’s office,” Mal whispered lowly, looking around the area at the various diagrams of dogs and cats as well as cabinets. “It just has animal pictures on the wall instead of humans.”

“Yeah, you’re right. I shouldn’t have been a baby about it, and I think that part of this is the dog and not me,” Evie apologetically told her and Mal smiled at her. Evie sat up on the table and leaned forward, licking Mal’s cheek. Mal scrunched her eyes shut, but tolerated it, knowing it was Evie just trying to show Mal affection as she normally would outside of dog form.

“I sure hope you didn’t lick your butt before you did that,” Uma couldn’t resist saying, and Evie drew back quickly as both Mal and Uma cackled at her expense.

“No, I didn’t!” Evie cried out, staring at Mal with wide eyes, and Mal shook her head, hugging Evie’s neck firmly with an arm as she laughed.

“That was just too good,” Mal grinned just as the door nearby opened and they all instinctively straightened.

It was the veterinarian, if the perfectly manicured white coat indicated anything at all. It was middle-aged man that was perhaps the most boring person that Mal had ever seen. He had a stern, sharp-featured face and he was largely unimpressed even in the presence of the king and the queen themselves.

“Hello, I’m Doctor Crouch,” he bowed carefully to the both of them in turn, not forgetting his manners despite forgetting to take his happy pills.

Mal nodded her head to him politely and stepped back a bit from Evie, allowing the doctor to approach her from the other side. However, Mal kept a hand on her the entire time in case she was to freak out.

The doctor started to firmly place his hands on her sides and shoulders, looking for any possible abnormalities, before finally feeling the underside of her stomach. Evie jumped at the freezing cold feel of his gloved hands on her belly before she looked at him with a slightly offended glance.

“I don’t remember human doctors being this invasive,” Evie mentioned, and Crouch ever so slowly looked up at his patient. When his eyes met Evie’s, she flashed her teeth in a guilty grin, not meaning to surprise him. After a moment of looking at the dog’s face, he shook his head, ultimately deciding it wasn’t worth the trouble of making a problem about.

“How did your dog come to talk?” Mal saw Evie stiffen in response to being so insensitively dubbed a dog. Mal felt a sudden pang of sympathy for Evie, knowing that this whole turning into a dog thing was nearly more than her sister could take. Evie had high standards for her outward appearance and having four legs and a wagging tail was certainly not on the bluenette’s list of qualifications of beauty.

“It’s a long story,” Mal settled for finally. “Also, don’t call her a dog. Her name’s Evie and she likes to be called that.” Evie looked at Mal gratefully as the man arose from her.

Crouch stared at Mal for a long moment, but nevertheless continued in his examination and he looked at her paw carefully.

“My husband accidentally ran her paw over with his-”

“With all due respect, I have already been informed of this incident,” Doctor Crouch informed her in a no-nonsense tone of voice.

“Oh, no, you didn’t get it like it really happened,” Uma spoke as she stepped up closer. He looked at her, an unimpressed expression on his face as he tolerantly waited for her to speak. Mal shot her a warning glance, but Uma just kept right on with a barely held back laugh.

“I saw him do it, Doc. He jumped the curb, zipped across the lawn, and mowed that dog down, her screaming in pain as he evilly laughed, reveling in her misery!” Uma exclaimed, only keeping serious for a few moments before bursting into laughter. Mal rolled her eyes, knowing she was just messing with the uptight doctor in an attempt to get some sort of reaction out of him that wasn’t just that boring monotone. Also, she could tell by Uma’s defensive stance that she must not have liked how the doctor replied to Mal in such a disrespectfully respectful manner.

He just raised an eyebrow with a disdainful look before continuing on in his examination.

“I expect it’s likely broken,” he finally assessed, and Evie swallowed, taking the news gracefully considering the fact that she had only experienced a broken bone once before in her life.

“No kidding. I could’ve told you that,” Uma informed him sassily. Mal ignored her and instead ran her fingers through the fur of Evie’s cheek reassuringly while Uma laid a hand on her back firmly. The man turned toward the cabinets as he searched for something.

“However, before we begin to address that situation with x-rays and other tests, I’m going to need to take her temperature, a routine procedure.”

“That shouldn’t be too hard. Just pop it in my mouth,” Evie told him, opening her maw effortlessly so the doctor could access her easily. The doctor swung his head around to look at her once more, mildly surprised by her ability of speech as he prepared the thermometer.

“Turn her backside toward me, because I will be doing this rectally,” Crouch informed them all, and Evie immediately froze. Uma’s eyes went wide as she took in the news, looking down at the dog sympathetically despite the small bit of humor that was in the situation. Mal regretfully turned Evie’s behind to face the man. However, just as soon as Evie was in position, she started frantically protesting.

“Rectally?! RECTALLY?!!! No, no, no, no, Doctor Crouch, you’ve got it all wrong!” Evie informed him before desperately staring at her so beloved sister.

“M, I’m a human, tell them,” the vet examined the thermometer closer and Mal held onto Evie’s new collar firmly, looking at Evie in her very much dog form with an apologetic expression before waving at Ben and Uma to turn away so Evie wouldn’t be quite as humiliated.

“Uma, help me out here!” Evie cried, and Uma just shook her head.

“Mal, I can tell you my temperature is perfect,” Evie continued to ramble to her sister as the vet started to quietly approach her behind. “Heck, check my nose, Mal, it’s wet! I’m perfectly healthy!”

“Mal, this is completely uncalled for and above all else embarrassing as CRAP!!!” Evie yelped loudly, her eyes going ridiculously wide as she gritted her teeth together as the vet finally inserted the thermometer. Mal stroked her head and rubbed her ears sympathetically, despite how overwhelmingly humorous that the entire situation was.

Evie’s paws slipped on the steel as they tried to find traction to hang on tightly in the midst of her extreme discomfort and definite embarrassment. As soon as the doctor removed the device, he examined it carefully to check the results.

Evie looked at Mal in horror, the whites of her eyes easily visible.

“I have been violated!”


	10. The Beginnings of Trouble

“C’mon, E, it’s not that bad,” Mal reassured the large dog lying in the floor of the parlor, the room just off of the living room. Evie was currently looking very depressed as her head rested as flush to the wood surface of the ground as she could.

They had finally gotten Evie home from her x-rays, bandaging, shots, and the other, more traumatic experience that occurred at the beginning of her visit with Doctor Crouch. Somehow or another, the whole group had managed to get together after hearing of Evie’s accident, and they all came to wish her well.

Evie would be gladly receiving each and every one of the people that had come to see her, but she was a bit preoccupied with her newfound accessory- a cone attached on her head.

“Think of it as a big party hat that says, ‘Hey, y’all! I have been _doctored_!’” Uma suggested falsely cheerfully, looking up from her phone as she grinned widely at Evie. All of the group just shook their heads, ignored her, or chuckled, relaxing in their respective spots.

Jay and Audrey were on the couch that was to the left side of that of Mal’s and they were curled close together in a comfortably entangled position, while directly opposite of them, Carlos and Jane were lounged on another couch and sitting close together with a small space between them. Uma was across from Mal with Harry and Gil on either side of her, her feet nearby Gil and her back lying on Harry’s lap as he twirled strands of her hair around his fingers.

Ben had left to take some paperwork to his office and start organizing it at Mal’s recommendation. She figured he likely needed to have at least a little time away from the situation at hand. He had gladly taken it, kissing her and stroking the sides of her neck in that way that combined with his lips drove her insane.

“I am not feeling like having a party. They did unspeakable things to me,” Evie replied to the pirate captain, her voice muffled by the ridiculous device strapped around her neck. Uma just snorted, rolling her eyes at Evie’s dramatics.

“You keep talking about these horrible things that happened to you, but you never actually say what they are,” Jay unhelpfully pointed out as Audrey snuggled further in his chest, fully comfortable with her newfound pillow. He gently ran a hand through her hair, enjoying its softness against his skin as he eyed Evie with a raised eyebrow.

“It just happened and there’s no reason to say what they are,” Evie firmly asserted, unhappily sulking in her state of humiliated misery as she spread out in a puddle-like form on the floor.

“Y’know, don’t you think you’re being a tad dramatic?” Uma questioned suddenly and Mal shot a look of warning in her direction. Uma shrugged, clearly not seeing the problem in bluntly stating her feelings on the subject.

When she didn’t get any response from the silvery dog, Uma simply returned to scrolling through her social media feed on her phone. Evie turned her head so she was looking in Mal’s direction, sadness etched clearly on her features.

Mal shook her head empathetically, patting the empty space beside her to invite Evie over onto the sofa with her. Evie looked at her longingly and after a little while, she dragged herself to her three functioning feet the best that she could. She then limped over to the couch and rested her head on Mal’s knee. Mal wasted no time stroking her sister’s head and rubbing it gently yet firmly.

“You know I’m not allowed on any elevated surfaces because of my injury,” Evie murmured, and Mal shook her head with a slight smirk as she ruffled Evie’s fur just a bit.

“What about last night?” Mal questioned teasingly, referring to when Evie had practically squished her when she leapt onto the sofa just the other night when they were watching the movie. Evie sighed, looking away with a somewhat sheepish expression.

“That was before a broken foot,” Evie grumbled, but Mal victoriously noted the slight huff of laughter that followed.

“Get up here, you goof,” Mal gently commanded, and Evie placed one paw up on the couch, trying to maneuver herself upon it. However, she could not very effectively pull herself up, so Mal pulled on her a bit in an attempt to drag her up.

Before long, Evie had made it onto the couch, and she rested her head in Mal’s lap, the cone awkwardly blocking her from actually crawling into her lap more fully.

“There you go. That’s a good girl,” Mal praised as she stroked the dog’s head.

“What happened at the vet, you guys?” Jay suddenly asked, and Mal looked at him, knowing that he was just dying to figure it out now.

Mal looked down at Evie before starting the short version of her tale.

“Well… Evie went in and weighed sixty-five pounds.”

“Which, of course, I razzed her about,” Uma interjected with a laugh. However, she quickly stopped in her mirth in favor of closing her eyes in enjoyment as Harry ran his fingers through the back of her hair against her scalp. He offered her a smirk as she shot him a glance that was a halfhearted scold. More like the barest fraction of a scold.

“That’s not heavy for a dog,” Evie complained, and Mal stroked her head.

“I know, I know,” Mal reassured her, and Carlos scooted forward, his eyes glowing as he launched into one of his favorite topics.

“Don’t worry. That’s not heavy for a dog of your size,” he reassured her. “In fact, most Labrador Retrievers weigh somewhere in the range of fifty-five to seventy-one pounds.”

“That’s what I said! Sort of!” Evie proclaimed, and Uma rolled her eyes as Carlos grinned widely, suddenly much more engaged in the story.

“So she weighed in at sixty-five pounds, and we took her in the examination room where the doctor came in.”

“Rude as heck, let me tell you,” Uma added in, and Mal knew she was going to need to be careful around this part considering Evie’s great embarrassment surrounding it.

“He then did a few tests on her and she had to go in the back without us for a few minutes. She must have gotten several shots, too, because she had nearly passed out by the time he brought her back to us with two vet assistants,” Mal continued, managing to completely skip over the part about the temperature taking. Evie flashed her a grateful glance, and Mal returned her look with a fond smile.

“What kind of shots were they?” Carlos eagerly questioned, completely enthralled by the veterinary operations.

“I don’t know. What were they, E?” Mal questioned, and the dog almost looked like she might pass out even now.

“I think rabies and parvo,” Evie informed them as she engaged in a full body shiver expressing just how horrified and disturbed that she was by the entire ordeal.

“Gives me the willies,” Evie expressed wholeheartedly and Mal couldn’t help but laugh at her for her particular wording of her feelings.

“Good grief, who says the willies anymore?” Jay questioned teasingly and Audrey shifted against him a bit, fully asleep as she rested. Of course, it didn’t take much for Audrey to go to sleep. Any remotely comfortable surface would do, and once she went to sleep it was exceedingly difficult to wake her up.

“I’ll have you know that the willies is most assuredly and most definitely a thing,” Evie told him, and he chuckled in response to her.

“I got the willies one time!” Gil supplied helpfully, and Harry and Uma rolled their eyes.

“Dontcha mean lice?” Harry questioned with an eyebrow raised.

“Oh… That wasn’t willies?”

“Nay, mate. T’wasn’t.”

“I was wondering why Uma kept telling me it was something that started with ‘l’ and ended with ‘e.’ Are you sure it’s not love?” Gil asked and Harry shook his head in pure exasperation.

“Nay, ye daft moron! It was lice!” Harry proclaimed, throwing a hand up in frustration with Gil’s pure and absolute stupidity. Uma just rolled her eyes again, relaxing her head against Harry’s chest as she scooted backward a bit further.

Mal laughed at them, fully enjoying the situation, until her phone suddenly buzzed. She checked it quickly and furrowed her brow upon realizing that Ben needed her and Uma for a little while. It was apparently something to do with a document that had to be signed and read by some of the most important people in the kingdom. He normally wouldn’t need Uma, but since Evie, the royal advisor, was out of commission currently, he needed someone else of great importance to sign it instead.

Mal sighed, leaning forward as she prepared to get up. Evie moved her head out of Mal’s lap, looking up at the girl curiously.

Uma raised an eyebrow.

“Where are you going?” Uma asked.

“You mean where are me and you going,” Mal corrected, and Uma huffed.

“Okay… And just where is that? I’m pretty comfy right here,” Uma informed the faerie, and Evie tilted her head as she watched Mal.

“Ben needs me and you to go sign a document and apparently help him look through it, too,” Mal explained to her, and Uma groaned as she pressed her head hard against Harry in pure dread.

“Aw, dang it. Do we have to?” Uma questioned pitifully, and Mal shook her head, understanding Uma’s feelings fully. Mal knew just how much Uma hated to be involved in signing things. She depended on Mal and other people she trusted to read it for her and give her the short version. Only if it was something that would affect the Isle would Uma ever actually read the document fully.

“Yeah, we have to,” Mal responded quickly. Uma sighed in resignation, but she started to arise nevertheless.

“Evie, you stay right here and rest,” Mal informed the dog, and Evie whined, unhappy with the command that she had been given, but she laid her head down on the pillow anyway.

Jay stretched before prodding Audrey until she woke up. Harry and Gil arose, and Jane and Carlos joined them. Everyone started out the door, and Evie propped her head up on the arm of the couch as she watched them file out. Mal was the last one to leave and she stopped in the doorway, blowing Evie a kiss playfully with a smile.

Evie smiled at her, knowing that the girl was just trying to cheer her up.

The door shut, signaling everyone’s leaving, and Evie sighed to herself, closing her eyes. However, after only a moment, she could feel the prickling of boredom bothering her fully.

Evie opened her eyes once again, looking about as she tried to think of something interesting to do. She sat up carefully before trying to figure out how to get down from the couch. She needed to move at least a little. This lack of any sort of stimulation was driving her insane.

She had always been one of those people that couldn’t stand being without anything to do. She had to be constantly occupied or she would not be satisfied. Of course, she could be calm and quiet, not doing anything at all, if her friends were around her. In that case, she’d be seated as closely as she could to preferably Mal and she’d relax there in silence.

However, now she was completely alone and without anyone at all to occupy her.

Evie hesitantly stepped down with her good front leg before following it quickly with the back leg on the opposite side. She quickly stepped down, catching her balance carefully.

She looked down for a moment, and she then puffed her chest out proudly. Evie was perfectly capable of handling things herself.

Evie limped along through the house for a moment, trying to stretch her legs as she attempted to think of something to do. She strode along toward the bedroom, and with nothing in there to look at, she turned back. She hobbled by the bathroom door and sped her pace a bit at the sight of it, not aiming to ever drink from the toilet again.

Before long, she was brought back to her initial place in the parlor. Evie huffed, sitting down for a moment as she looked around. There was absolutely nothing to do at all.

After a moment, her gaze settled upon where Jay and Audrey had been seated, and she decided that she would see if she could climb upon it. There were various cushions on it, and it ultimately looked like a very comfortable place to rest.

She strode over to it and placed her good front paw on the sofa before bringing her opposite back leg up to climb up the piece of furniture. Evie then successfully hauled herself onto the sofa.

Evie nestled into the comfort of the cushions.

Until she realized that she was still bored. She was so bored that she couldn’t go to sleep, but she couldn’t think of anything to do either.

She sighed, looking around once more. Evie glanced at the pillow that was lying just at her front paws, and she poked her nose against it impulsively, feeling its softness and squishiness.

It was certainly nice to the touch, and she couldn’t help but push it just a little harder, placing a paw upon it to hold it in place.

Suddenly, she felt the dog pulling her toward it increasingly, and she furrowed her brow, unsure of what it was trying to do. However, all she knew was that the more she played with the pillow, the less bored she felt.

So as she poked the pillow and grew closer it, the dog slowly took over all of the conscious human thoughts, sending Evie herself into oblivion.


	11. In the Dog House

Evie suddenly returned to consciousness, her awareness returning to her all at once as she heard voices outside the door. She wagged her tail, realizing that Mal had returned and by the sounds of it, Ben and Uma were with her.

However, her perhaps more important realization was that she was laying in the floor instead of upon the couch where she had been the last time she checked. Evie laid her ears back, confused as to what was going on. She sat up, and her eyes widened in horror as she tried to comprehend what was around her.

It looked like it had snowed in the room, and there in front of her was the same pillow’s remains along with the remains of tons of other throw pillows. Evie still couldn’t quite piece it together, and when the three humans entered the room, she was still confused as ever.

Mal was laughing at something that Uma had said, and Ben was grinning widely as well. Mal turned her face away from the pirate captain with a grin.

That grin quickly faded away at the sight of the room that was absolutely covered in white fluff and torn fabric. Evie was sitting in the middle of it all, her eyes wide in confusion.

Mal didn’t say anything as she stepped forward, gaping at it all with her fists clenched. Evie stood up, looking around and bringing her trusting gaze back to her best friend. She knew that Mal would be able to explain all of this.

“Mal, what is going on? What is this?” Evie questioned, and Mal’s gaze slowly met her own, and Evie could’ve sworn she saw a flash of fury in the other girl’s eyes.

“There’s… stuffing everywhere. What happened?” Evie prodded, trying to comprehend it fully as she was still absolutely baffled by it all. Mal’s nostrils flared as her eyes narrowed while she watched the dog. Evie paused, suddenly realizing just how upset that Mal appeared.

“Hey, M? Are you okay?” Evie asked, tilting her head as she eyed the girl before her, her eyes glowing with that sisterly affection.

It was then that Mal broke fully.

“Am I okay? Am I okay?! You did not just ask that!” Mal cried disbelievingly as she walked a little further in the room, positively fuming. There were a few seconds of silence before Mal completely lost all semblances of calm.

“Honest to goodness, you have been nothing but irritating and badly behaved since this whole thing started,” Mal boomed, and Evie flinched at the volume of her voice.

Meanwhile, Ben and Uma just stood to the side, watching Mal quietly and not really knowing what to say to help the situation. Ben looked ready to run, and Uma was watching the two concernedly, her jaw set firmly.

“Mal…”

“You make _this_ mess!” Mal exclaimed, and Evie suddenly noticed the stuffing that was stuck on a tooth. She used her tongue to push it out, and she watched blankly as the fluff fell to the ground. If possible, Mal became even more mad at the sight.

“You ran out in front of Ben and nearly killed yourself, you crapped in the yard and took forever to decide where, you licked my face with your tongue covered in toilet water, you shed all over my couch, you tore down an entire pet store and got us kicked out, and worst of all, you used my spell book!”

“How stupid is that? What in the world would possess you to ever do that?!” Mal yelled, and Evie looked at the mess around her, not knowing how it happened but knowing that the dog must have took over her again.

“This whole thing is all your fault!” Mal added, and Evie lowered her head as she looked at her very angry best friend.

“So, no! I’m not okay! You are a bad dog, Evie. A bad, _bad_ , BAD dog!” Mal yelled at the charcoal lab. Evie’s tail was now drooping, and her eyes were big as she accepted all of the scolding words, her ears falling down pitifully as she looked up at Mal. Evie looked around a bit more, realizing just how large of a mess that things were in. Fortunately, all that she had destroyed were throw pillows on several pieces of furniture around the house, but that was still a huge mess of stuffing.

Evie looked back at the very much fuming Mal, stepping forward a bit as she met the other girl’s eyes finally.

“Mal, I’m sorry-”

“Oh, yeah, now you’re going to pull the apology card. Guess what, Evie? Apologies don’t fix messes like this!” Mal snapped at her and Evie stepped back, looking at the other girl with her eyes wide.

Mal glared at her for just a bit longer before waving her hand dismissively and starting to pick up stuffing. Evie laid her ears back as she backed away and walked a wide berth around the steaming faerie.

Once she was nearby Ben and Uma, the both of them offered her a sympathetic smile. Uma knelt down, reaching out to her carefully. However, Evie shied away from her hand, trotting briskly by her as she headed for the bedroom.

Evie, with her tail tucked between her legs, attempted to crawl beneath the bed, but her cone wouldn’t allow her to do so. She sighed shakily, resting as close to the edge of the bed as she could manage.

Evie honestly couldn’t remember anything that had happened. There were only a few flashes, but she didn’t remember anything like what she saw in the other room. Evie didn’t know why she had done it, either. The last thing that she clearly had recollection of was that she was bored, she had figured out how to get down and on top of the couch without assistance, and she was having fun poking the soft, squishy cushions that were now torn to oblivion.

The dog must have decided that it was going to take away any feelings of boredom that she might have.

Evie jumped a bit as she suddenly heard somewhat raised voices in the other room.

“Look, all I’m saying is that she didn’t deserve what you gave her! It was too much,” Uma informed her defensively.

“Oh, ho, too much? That is hilarious. Uma, you haven’t had to put up with her all of yesterday and today! She’s been absolutely intolerable, and I wish I never would’ve trusted her to help me find the spell book!” Mal exclaimed, and things were quiet for a moment as everyone took in that statement. If possible, Evie felt even worse, and she whimpered quietly as she felt the weight of the statement crushing her.

After a moment, Uma chuckled humorlessly.

“Whatever you say. You’re the boss,” Uma shot back at her and there was once again silence.

Evie just couldn’t stand this guilt and the overwhelming pain that it was causing her. She was sure that if Mal yelled at her or talked so badly about her again, she’d positively fall over and die. So, when she felt the prickles of fear, and the slightest nudging of suggestion poking at her brain, Evie allowed it to take over without any fighting against it, reveling in the release it provided her.

This time, being controlled by the dog side of her worked differently. This time, she was keeping her mind and the ability to see and know what was going on around her, and it was almost as if she were now sharing everything with the animal.

She subtly slipped through the hallway and behind Ben, Uma, and Mal as they were bent down and picking up stuffing everywhere, bags in their hands. Evie noticed that all of their backs seemed to be turned to the door and she looked toward it. The door was open wide and was strangely inviting.

“ _Run_ , _run away_ ,” something inside seemed to whisper to her. Evie took control of it just enough to look in Mal’s direction and she saw that the girl was angrily cramming stuffing into the bag, looking just as angry as she was the last time that Evie had seen her. She started to mentally apologize to her sister, but she quickly remembered Mal’s reaction to that earlier, so she quelled any urge to do so again. Evie looked to the doorway, and with the dog’s encouragement, she strode out of it quietly, heading down the hall.

With a few open doors and by slipping behind a few servants exiting the castle, Evie managed to escape. She looked up, noticing that it was nearly completely dark out.

Evie lowered her head and continued on, too absorbed in her own feelings of hurt, betrayal, and guilt to logically consider that she needed to find shelter. Evie hurried down the sidewalk, not sure where she was going but knowing she needed to get away from it all.

She strode along, her tail drooping down behind her as she limped.

It was horrible. She had made a stupid mistake and now Mal didn’t trust her anymore. One of her worst fears in the world was coming true and there was no one else to blame but herself. Evie loved Mal more than anything, and she had never meant to upset the other girl or do anything to betray her.

The worst part of it was that she could not get angry with Mal for any of the accusations. Evie had done all of it- albeit unconsciously- and she had no idea how most of them had happened.

Evie never intentionally would have run out in front of Ben’s moped, giving everyone a heart attack including herself. She could have died if he would have hit her in just the wrong spot or she could have thrown him from the moped and hurt him badly as well.

Evie never intentionally would have destroyed an entire pet shop either. The idea of being microchipped was too much for a girl that was terrified of needles and fainted at the sight of her own blood. Additionally, dogs apparently didn’t like the idea wither, which sent her into a frenzy.

Most importantly, Evie never intentionally would have done anything to turn herself into this dreadful form or take away Mal’s trust in her. Mal was right. It was so stupid of her to do this to herself and cause everyone else such inconvenience, trouble, time, and pain.

Evie only stopped when she realized that she was in the midst of town, the lights shining all around her brightly in the night. Her stomach suddenly rumbled and she whined, her ears laying back as she looked around. Suddenly, however, her highly sensitive nose picked up a certain smell. She looked around, her nose hard at work as she searched for the source.

After only a few moments, she realized that there was a fast food restaurant nearby, and she wasted no time in following the scent.

Her nose took her around the back of the place, and she felt her mouth water at the intense scent of chicken nuggets and hamburgers. However, she was much more revolted by it once she realized it originated from a garbage can. Evie started to back away, but much like her time with the toilet water, her legs worked for her, and she lost awareness, the last thing she saw being the garbage can growing closer.

Her human mind quickly returned to her once there was someone outside nearby yelling at her. She quickly stood up, running before the man could get physical with her. She darted over to a nearby fence, keeping her hurt paw off of the ground as she limped quickly, and she headed for a hole in the chain-link.

But to her shock, she couldn’t get her cone to fit. In the midst of her panic, she pushed as hard as she could, the cone bending at an odd shape as she stressed it. Suddenly, the cone popped, breaking apart, and Evie tumbled forward. She yelped as she landed on her injured foot, but she stood up quickly, hobbling away.

What she didn’t notice was that her collar was left behind, sparkling there in the moonlight.

Once she was far enough removed from the scene, she slowed down, looking back for a moment before walking on, her tail lowered as she thought absently of returning home to the people that she knew and loved.

But was it really any better to go home and be yelled at by people she loved than to be yelled at and shooed away by people she didn’t?

Evie solemnly thought on that as she licked her chops, enjoying the last bits of salt remaining from whatever she had eaten in the garbage can. She couldn’t even bring herself to be disgusted about eating from the trash of all things. She was too disgusted with herself and her behavior.

Her foot throbbed as she limped, and she couldn’t help but think of how nice it would be to lay down on the couch with her best friend and watch that stupid Jumanji movie. Even if she had to lay on the pillows, she’d gladly accept it.

Evie suddenly started whining and given the huge hole that felt like it was inside of her, she had to guess that it was likely the dog’s equivalent of crying. She stopped, hopelessly invested in her sadness.

However, before she knew it, something thin yet strong wrapped around her neck, and she yelped loudly, all whining gone from her system in favor of trying to escape. Evie backed up, holding one paw near her chest as she tried to get away from whatever had snagged her.

She took the time to look and she realized that it was a dog catcher. Evie pulled back, trying desperately to pull away and escape from her captor. But before she knew it, he had muzzled her and put her in the back of his truck in a cage.

Evie furrowed her brow, panicking as she listened to him get in the truck. She jerked when she felt the truck suddenly take off with her in it. Evie glanced around her in a frenzy, knowing she needed to escape. In the midst of her desperate searching, she noticed several other dogs nearby her.

There was a little brown puppy along with an old, silvery bulldog. To the right of their cage was a Pitbull along with a shaggy mutt. To the left of her own cage, there was an aggressive-looking Doberman that appeared as if he might eat her if he weren’t shaking so badly.

Evie could see how absolutely terrified that they all appeared, but they seemed to have resigned in trying to escape from their bondage. Evie averted her gaze and searched for a way out. Evie was going to find a way out. They may have given up, but they were just dogs. She had a human brain on her side.

After only a moment, Evie quickly noticed a lock at the bottom of the cage. She excitedly scratched at it the best she could with her good leg, hoping that it might come loose. But alas, it was not meant to be, and she could easily tell that there would be no way that she could open it while in her current dilemma.

She whimpered as she slowly lay down in defeat.

There was no chance of returning home now.


	12. We've Got to Find Her

Uma and Mal sat together in silence, all of the stuffing and the leftover fabric crammed into plastic bags lying in a big pile near the door. Uma was on one end of Mal’s new couch, and Mal was on the other end of it.

Ben had quickly left after he, Mal, and Uma had picked up the fluff, an excuse on his tongue about how he had to go and check some things at his office. Mal knew better, but she didn’t call him out on it. As for Uma, Mal didn’t have any idea why she was still there.

Mal absently picked at the gray dog hairs peppering her side of the couch, thankful that Evie hadn’t chewed the pillows or anything on this particular sofa and had only shed on it.

It had made Mal so mad to find her entire parlor devoid of any pillows and covered in a ridiculous coating of stuffing. Of course, it was something that had been building up since the very first moment that she had found out Evie was a dog. All of the frustration, all of the fear, all of the aggravation, all of the humor, all of the stress- it just came in one giant blowout.

But it was at the person that had caused it all completely unintentionally and didn’t deserve a word of the explosion.

Mal sighed, starting to feel worse and worse as she remembered just how stricken and grieved that Evie looked at Mal’s scolding. Mal shut her eyes hard, trying to get the memory of Evie cowering there before her out of her brain. Instead, it seemed to just brand it more fully.

Uma was right. Mal did get out of hand and Evie certainly didn’t deserve it. Evie was innocent because it was that blasted dog living inside of her that was causing all of the trouble. Evie didn’t know how to control it, and to be honest, Mal wouldn’t know if she were the one that was a dog. Mal knew she had been mean and harsh to Evie, and she shouldn’t have been. Of all things, Mal had scolded Evie as if she were a dog, which was surely humiliating for the slightly older girl.

Evie was among the few people that Mal loved dearly, and Mal couldn’t believe that she had treated her best friend, sister, and confidant in such a way as she had. Mal swallowed hard before daring the barest of glances at Uma.

The pirate captain was just sitting there, seething quietly as she stared at a spot on the ground nearby. Mal couldn’t blame her at all for being so mad. Mal had went totally overboard and Uma was the only one who had the guts to say it. Besides, Mal deserved it for how she treated Evie. Mal wasn’t really sure why Uma was even still here.

Mal chewed her gum tentatively, working the words around in her mouth before actually voicing them.

“I think I’m an idiot,” Mal informed the other girl, and Uma looked over at her with a non-genuine laugh at the faerie’s expense.

“Took you this long to figure it out, huh?” Uma questioned, and Mal could see Uma’s barely controlled urge to snap further. Mal knew that Uma was absolutely infuriated because Uma was actually in fact quite fond of Evie. Once someone made it past Uma’s hard outer shell, she would protect them with everything she had. Even if it meant protecting them from someone that was equally as or more close with Uma.

“Look… I was a jerk, and I shouldn’t have talked to her that way,” Mal informed the other girl honestly, and Uma just silently stared at her, the anger very much still evident in her. Mal sighed, meeting the pirate captain’s eyes.

“I’m sorry for talking to you that way,” Mal apologized to Uma, and to Mal’s pure shock, Uma appeared quite possibly more miffed than she was before.

“Don’t apologize to me. Apologize to that girl in the bedroom that’s suffering ten times more than either of us could be,” Uma expressed to the girl, only a hint of softness in her stare as she spoke.

Mal nodded carefully, arising and heading for the bedroom carefully.

After a few moments, however, Mal strode back into the living room, placing her hands on the back of couch where Uma was seated. Uma turned back to look at her and furrowed her brow at the look of pure panic that she received.

“What’s going on?”

“She’s not back there, Uma,” Mal informed her shortly.

“What do you mean ‘not back there?’” Uma questioned, and Mal just stared at her with wide eyes.

“She’s not back there at all. I couldn’t find her!” Mal clarified, her voice raising a bit in the midst of her pure freaking out. Uma stood up quickly, going down the hall to take a look for herself.

Uma charged through the hall, opening doors quickly and calling Evie’s name desperately before finally swinging through the parlor and coming back into the living room where Mal was in an emotional mess of guilt, confusion, and panic.

“Why would she leave? I thought she knew better than leaving!” Mal cried, fully freaking out at this point. Uma spun to face the young Queen, her eyes blazing.

“She left because of what you said to her!” Uma yelled, and Mal stopped to listen to the other girl.

“You know, there _is_ another side to what you said to her. You left her by herself, knowing good and well it was risky considering how she’s been lately. You didn’t have her leash when she ran out toward Ben, which you knew better than doing based on past experience,” Uma spat, and Mal turned her head to the side somewhat stubbornly, but nevertheless letting Uma say her piece.

“And do you think she intentionally crapped in the yard? I mean, come on. She took so long to decide where because it was dang embarrassing to have your best friend watching you and waiting for you to use the bathroom of all things,” Uma pointed out, not holding back anything from her brutal wakeup call that she was issuing to the faerie.

“She didn’t lick your face with toilet tongue on purpose, shedding on the stupid couch is the least of your worries, and the reason she tore down the pet store was because of me! It was my fault, because I wanted to get her microchipped for a situation just like the one we’re facing now!” Uma pointed out, throwing out an arm in pure frustration. Mal just watched the pirate, clenching and unclenching her jaw as she took the tongue-lashing.

“Oh, and one more thing. She didn’t know what the spell book could do, and I daresay that you didn’t know she had the power to activate it, either,” Uma finished strongly, narrowing her eyes at the other girl as she crossed her arms over her chest. Mal and Uma stood there for a moment, just staring each other down, before Mal finally looked at the ground, letting out a shaky breath.

“We need to find her,” Mal finally spoke, barely above a whisper. Uma watched her for a moment more before uncrossing her arms, letting them fall to her sides.

“Come on,” Uma told her. Mal quickly followed, taking her phone and sending a group chat to Jay, Carlos, Audrey, Jane, Harry, Gil, and Ben. arry

They charged through the halls, calling for Evie loudly. A few servants looked at them a bit oddly but said nothing. After all, they had by now seen stranger than a pirate captain and the Queen running through the halls and yelling at the top of their lungs. It soon became clear that Evie was obviously not anywhere within the castle walls.

Uma and Mal finally arrived outside and they spotted their group outside, already looking around outdoors. Everyone was clapping their hands, whistling, and yelling Evie’s name loudly.

The two girls shared a glance, knowing that Evie was apparently not just missing from the inside of the castle but was obviously nowhere even around the castle. They hurried down the stairs and everyone hurried to meet them in the middle of the driveway.

“Didja see ‘er inside?” Harry questioned, looking at Uma. Uma shook her head, a serious expression on her face as she stood there.

Jay and Carlos were almost as worried as Mal, but they were handling it much better than she was. Her worried was mixed with guilt, which intensified her emotions tenfold.

Audrey was furiously typing at her phone, her brow furrowed in concern.

“What are you doing, princess?” Uma asked Audrey, and she looked up just barely from her phone, tapping away at the keyboard.

“I’m texting everyone I know, asking them if they’ve seen a Labrador with a cone on its head,” Audrey informed her quickly. Uma raised an eyebrow but nodded nevertheless. It was a good idea.

“Guys, we’ve got to get out there and look for her. Just texting people isn’t enough. Evie’s somewhere out there- hurt, scared, lonely,” Mal explained, feeling herself sinking even more with dread and fear. Ben drew nearer to her, wrapping an arm around her shoulder comfortingly. Uma sighed deeply before turning to the group.

“Alright, Harry, take Gil in your Camaro and head west, circling around here. Do not get pulled over, you hear me? We need you out looking around, not getting a dang ticket because of your crap driving,” Uma instructed firmly, and Harry nodded swiftly before turning and heading for the garage.

“Jay, take Audrey and y’all go out east, circling around this castle,” Uma pointed in the general direction, and the two of them shared a glance before going to get in Jay’s Ford Raptor that he had driven there earlier.

“Carlos, you and Jane go down south of here,” Uma told them, and Carlos and Jane immediately took off. Uma then finally looked at Mal, her eyes mixed with determination, anger, and fear.

“As for you, me, and Ben, we’re getting in the Hummer and going through the middle of town,” Uma told them shortly, and the King and Queen followed her swiftly.

Before long, they were driving through the middle of the city, headlights shining and heads hanging out of the window as they called for Evie desperately.

“Evie?!” Mal shouted from her position in the passenger seat, her window rolled down.

“Evie?!” Ben yelled loudly, following it up with two fingers in his mouth to whistle.

Mal shook her head, resisting the urge to cry as she grew more and more distressed about the whereabouts of her best friend. Mal didn’t know what she would do if she couldn’t find Evie. Evie was one of the most important people in her life, and she wouldn’t be able to live with herself if something happened to her or if she was missing.

Uma turned nearby a fast food restaurant, and Mal looked out her window, the wind blowing her hair behind her as they rode. She furrowed her brow in worry, and she felt Ben squeeze her shoulder sympathetically from his seating just behind her.

However, suddenly, something sparkled nearby the sidewalk on the concrete underneath a fence and Mal’s eyes widened in recognition as she pointed at it quickly.

“Wait, Uma, stop!” Mal cried, throwing an arm out in Uma’s direction. Uma immediately pulled over, and Mal slung open her door, running for two particular items that she had spotted nearby a broken run-down fence.

The other two came running behind her, and Mal paused as she reached the chain link fence, getting down on her knees as she took the collar and the broken plastic cone carefully. The spikes on the collar shone beautifully in the moonlight and they were practically impossible to miss.

“What did you find?” Ben questioned as Mal stood up quickly.

“I got her collar and her cone,” Mal informed them shortly before bending down and crawling through the hole in the fence carefully. Uma shared a glance with Ben before following her swiftly.

Mal ran across the concrete, looking all around for Evie and yelling louder and more desperately as she sprinted.

“Evie?! Evie?!” Mal cried, but there was no answer. She took off toward the pavement of the road as swiftly as she could, aiming to cross the road. However, a horn suddenly honked loudly at her, and arms wrapped around her middle swiftly. Mal gaped at the car came jerking to a stop, just narrowly missing her.

Mal breathed hard, gasping for breath as she realized that Uma and Ben had saved her. Uma was the one that had grabbed her with both arms, and Ben wrapped an arm around both of them to yank them back.

Mal shut her eyes tight as she heard the car doors shut on the vehicle that had nearly ran her over.

“Mal, what were you doing?!” Carlos cried, and Mal ducked her head, feeling the hot sting of tears burning in her eyes. She just barely looked up at the boy, and his eyes softened as Uma released her. He opened his arms, and Mal rushed into them, clinging to him tightly.

Carlos stroked her back gently, hugging her wholeheartedly as she resisted the urge to cry. Soon enough, there was the telltale rumble of Jay’s engine of his truck as it came to a stop.

She sighed shakily as she quickly felt Jay’s arms around her and Carlos both. She squinted her eyes shut as hard as she could, trying to imagine the feel of being wrapped in Evie’s arms as well.

But they weren’t and wouldn’t be until Mal found her and somehow managed to change her back with that still missing spell book.

Mal took a deep breath, offering Jay and Carlos one more tight squeeze as she pulled away with a barely concealed sniffle.

“Thank you, Uma. Thank you, Ben,” Mal expressed, wiping at her eyes with her sleeve before straightening and clearing her throat.

Uma nodded to her, unsettled by the entire situation, and Ben gulped, offering a soft smile to her.

“I found Evie’s collar and her cone,” Mal informed the group, and Jay, Audrey, Jane, and Carlos offered some sort of knowledgeable agreement.

“Ben texted us the location when you guys stopped at the fence,” Carlos explained, and Mal sent Ben a grateful expression.

“And, Mal, I had this idea,” Carlos started, and Mal furrowed her brow, providing her full attention for whatever he had thought of. She was open to anything at this point. Mal couldn’t stand the thought of another moment without Evie.

“I think we should check the animal shelters around,” Carlos informed her, and Mal just stared at the younger boy in total shock.

“You think she’s in the pound?” Mal questioned, her face blank.

“She could be,” Carlos replied, a slight smile on his face as he looked at his sister.

“She’s in the pound,” Mal repeated, sealing it in her mind ever more.

“Well, I’m not sure, but it’s possible.”

“She is in the pound,” Mal expressed, more certainty in her tone as she found herself filled with a rising hope.

“Maybe?” Carlos held out his hands in a calming gesture, trying to keep Mal from getting too set on the idea in case he was wrong. Which he really hoped he wasn’t.

“Well, let’s go!” Mal informed him excitedly as she turned back to start for Uma’s vehicle.

“Wait, wait! There’s no pounds open,” Carlos explained quickly, trying to get her attention. Mal paused, turning back and marching to Ben determinedly.

“Open the pounds, Ben,” Mal commanded shortly, and Ben shook his head sadly.

“Mal, I can’t make people open the animal shelters. I’m worried about Evie, too, but there’s nothing we can do until tomorrow morning as far as shelters go,” Ben spoke, and Mal looked away, stricken.

“We could look for her more if you want,” Audrey piped up finally, and Jane nodded eagerly. Mal offered them a kind yet tired smile as she crossed her arms over her chest.

“Guys, I appreciate it, but you don’t have to keep looking. I can go,” Mal expressed.

“Look, I don’t know when you became such a martyr, but I’m not allowing this out of character behavior,” Uma informed her shortly, stepping up to face the faerie more fully. Mal was grateful to see that there was not as much anger in her face anymore, but she was a little afraid of the lack of emotion.

“Everybody knows that I’m the martyr,” Uma deadpanned shortly, and Mal stared at her for a moment before breaking down into almost hysterical laughter. Uma snorted hard and Mal just cackled at the other girl. The purple-haired girl stepped closer and wrapped an arm around the pirate’s neck fondly, bringing her against her firmly.

Uma returned the hug, squeezing the smaller girl tightly.

“Let’s go home. We’ll be full of energy tomorrow and ready to check every corner of Auradon plus pounds,” Uma spoke softly into the other girl’s ear.

Mal nodded, releasing the pirate as she sniffled slightly.

Uma paused for a moment, realizing that Harry and Gil hadn’t yet joined the group. She rolled her eyes before dialing Harry’s number swiftly, her and the royal couple heading back for her vehicle.

“ _Ahoy, Cap’n_.”

“Where the heck are you? You got that text that Ben sent, didn’t you?”

“ _Yeah, yeah! We got the text_ …”

“Well, then, why ain’t you here?”

“ _You see, we have an… ‘ittle bitty, tiny problem. ‘Tis certainly no reason to overreact, get cross, or blow up o’er_ -”

“Did you get pulled over?”

“ _Well…. Yeah_.”

“HAROLD BARON HOOK! WHAT DID I TELL YOU-”


	13. More than Anyone Else

Mal opened her eyes expectantly as her alarm on her phone went off. She reached over to the nightstand, turning off her phone as she swung her legs over so that they were dangling off the edge of the bed.

She held her head in her hands for a moment as she sighed deeply and fully, offering herself a moment to collect herself in preparation for the day. Mal had hardly gotten a single wink of sleep that night because every time she shut her eyes, Evie’s stricken face haunted her mind and soul, sending her into another spiral of concern and fear.

Mal stood up, shaking at Ben’s leg to wake him up. He groaned deeply, rolling over onto his stomach as he tried to wake up.

“Gosh, I didn’t sleep a bit,” Ben complained, and Mal chuckled at him humorlessly.

“Yeah. Come on, we’ve got to get ready,” Mal informed him shortly. He eventually arose, and they were soon both getting dressed to go out looking at the shelters. Ben wordlessly made some toast and they swiftly crammed it down their throats.

Ben headed for the bathroom, and Mal followed him in after a moment, the both of them planning to brush their teeth before leaving. Mal walked in and she froze as soon as her eyes settled upon Ben using his toothbrush in his mouth. Mal gaped at him, her eyes wide as she remembered exactly where it had been and how she had forgotten to throw it away.

“What?” Ben questioned, his mouth full of foam as he expressed his confusion with both eyebrows raised curiously. Mal shook herself from her stupor, deciding not to say anything about where the toothbrush had found itself the previous morning.

“Nothing. Just thinking of something,” Mal casually said, so that he perhaps wouldn’t suspect anything. After all, it wouldn’t be too kind to explain to him that his toothbrush was completely ruined with toilet water just as it was halfway down his throat.

They finished brushing their teeth, and just as Ben went out of the bathroom, Mal threw the toothbrush in the garbage can. They then headed out the door, texting Uma to meet them outside of the castle.

Everyone else wanted to come with them as well but had some reason or another why they could not. Audrey, Carlos, and Jane had school that day and were supposed to be looking for the spell book while they were there. Jay had a big Tourney game that he couldn’t miss despite how hard he tried to convince the coach. As for Uma’s crewmates, the pirate captain had officially grounded Harry and Gil to the house after Harry had received yet another ticket after last night to add to his humongous pile.

They opened the great doors to the castle and reached the top of the staircase. As Mal looked down at the driveway nearby, she felt her heart warm at the sight of Uma leaning against her Hummer, mostly alert besides a few yawns. Ben and Mal started down the stairs, and Uma’s gaze flicked over to them.

She offered them a somewhat hopeful smile.

“You ready?” Uma checked, and they both nodded silently, too tired to really say anything to her at all.

Ben clambered in the backseat, yawning heavily as he tried to keep awake, and Mal got into the passenger seat. Uma started the car and they were on their way to the largest shelter in the city, and therefore the shelter that Evie would most likely be at if she had been captured by the dog catcher.

“Did you get much sleep?” Uma questioned, and Mal just turned her head, staring at the pirate blankly. Uma offered a grin to her.

“Yeah, I’m gonna take that as a no,” Uma answered her own question, and Mal then noticed how weak and squinted that Uma’s eyes seemed, indicating her pure exhaustion.

“I’m guessing you didn’t either?” Mal asked. Uma just shrugged in return, and Mal chalked that to a form of agreement.

They drove in silence for a while, Mal leaning against the window as she stared out of it and tried to spot any signs of a gray dog just in case.

Just as her eyelids were starting to droop, Uma suddenly stopped. Mal jerked in surprise as the motor turned off, and she looked at Uma questioningly.

“We’re here,” Uma pointed out as if it were obvious, and technically, it would have been if Mal were a little more alert. Ben was in the back snoring a storm, and Mal didn’t have the heart to wake him, but Uma proclaimed that if Evie was there, then he’d want to be up to see her.

So, while Mal was hesitating, Uma reached back and slapped his boot that was resting on the back of her seat. Mal resisted the urge to laugh as he woke up quickly, his eyes wide as he gaped at the two of them.

“Your dirty foot was on my leather,” Uma informed him shortly, and Mal finally laughed. Ben shook his head, and they all got out of the vehicle.

When they entered the shelter, Mal immediately was infinitely more awake than she had been all morning. They approached the front desk, and Mal heard countless dogs barking in another room.

“Hi, I was wondering if I could go back to the dog area. I need to see if my dog is there,” Mal explained to the man, and his eyes widened at the sight of the queen before he swiftly stood up.

“Yes, your majesty, of course,” he granted, and he hurried over to a door, opening it effortlessly before waving them in.

“There’s plenty of dogs in here. Feel free to look around. I can open any of the cages if you find the one you’re looking for,” he said, and Mal offered him a grateful smile as she started down the hall.

Mal looked carefully in each one of the cages, trying to swallow her fear of dogs as several really big ones that were even larger than Evie as a dog jumped on their cage doors with booming barks. There were dogs of all sizes. There were tiny and scrawny dogs, giant and sizable dogs, medium dogs that weren’t really large or really small, black dogs, white dogs, brown dogs, long-haired dogs, short-haired dogs. There were more dogs in that hall than Mal had ever seen in her life.

She continued down the hallway, her heart sinking more and more as she grew nearer to the end. Ben, Uma, and the man from the front desk were close behind her as she looked around.

Mal’s heart was at her feet by the time she reached the last two cages on opposite sides. Mal looked in the one to the right, and it was empty. She sighed, dreading turning to the left, knowing that her dog wouldn’t be there.

Mal finally looked in the left cage, and her heart went soaring with excitement, love, and relief. There, lying in the corner with her behind facing the door was a charcoal Labrador Retriever. Mal’s face fell as she realized that Evie wasn’t even responding to the fact that someone was clearly in the hallway.

Mal pointed to the cage door, and the man hurried over, unlocking it swiftly. Mal shared a significant glance with Ben and Uma and they nodded, turning to head outside in the room up front.

Mal opened the door carefully, stepping into the small cell.

She kept her eyes on the dog’s form that hadn’t moved since she first laid eyes on it. Mal hesitantly sat down not too far behind her, her hands folded on her lap.

“Hey, Evie,” Mal finally spoke. The dog didn’t respond, and judging by its stillness, one would almost think it was dead if it weren’t for the steady expanding and contracting of her ribcage.

Mal was sure that she was awake. She sighed shakily.

“First, I am so, so, so sorry. I was so unfair to you, and you didn’t deserve any of what I said to you. Uma helped me see that. I’ve been a total jerk to you,” Mal explained herself, her voice wavering against her will. She hopefully watched the dog lying there not too far in front of her, but the dog never made a single move.

“I shouldn’t have gotten so upset with you about the stupid pillows. That was so ridiculous. It’s my fault. I should’ve known not to leave you alone. And everything else, that’s not your fault either. You didn’t mean for any of this,” Mal told her, feeling that familiar burn of tears that were so freshly there last night as her voice cracked.

“And I know you didn’t mean to get turned into a dog. You didn’t know it would happen. _I_ didn’t know it would happen!” Mal cried, giggling almost hysterically as she tried to keep the tears from spilling down her face but miserably failed. She wiped at the wetness on her cheeks.

“I’m truly and sincerely sorry, Evie,” Mal apologized, blinking as several more tears streamed down her face. Mal kept her eyes on the dog for a while longer, and for a while longer, she didn’t move a muscle.

“Do you trust me?” the voice of Evie finally sounded and Mal froze, watching the dog’s form even closer.

“What?” Mal asked.

“Do you trust me?” Evie repeated slowly, her head repositioning just slightly so that Mal caught the barest peek of the side of Evie’s head.

“Evie, more than anyone else in the entire world,” Mal heartfeltly expressed, her voice warbling in a manner that was detrimental to her articulation. But it really didn’t matter anymore.

Evie slowly and shakily arose from her place on the cold concrete, turning to face Mal slowly. Evie’s eyes weren’t accusing as Mal was so terrified they would be, but they were soft, kind, and loving as she expressed that usual admiration and Evie-esque emotion

She limped over to Mal carefully, and Mal felt a new, fresh wave of tears coming over her as relief started to flood over her. Evie moved over, licking Mal’s tears away gently, and Mal let her gladly, just happy to have her near again.

Evie looked at Mal with that doting expression before Mal threw her arms around Evie’s neck tightly, pulling her near. Evie whined, pressing her chin against Mal’s back hard as she looped her head around Mal’s shoulder to pull her closer. Mal buried her face into Evie’s furred neck, just the barest hints of Evie’s signature perfume left in it.

Mal was so glad to have Evie back in her arms. Her wonderful best friend, big sister, one of her most favorite people in the world. Mal had missed her so much, and she was so grateful to see her again. She didn’t want anything to ever come between them again. Especially something as stupid as torn apart throw pillows.

“I was so scared you wouldn’t trust me anymore after I used your spell book,” Evie whispered, and Mal squeezed her tighter, her heart aching as she wholly regretted what she had said to her best friend.

“Oh, E… Nothing could ever break my trust in you. I know you so well, and I know that you would never, ever do anything intentionally to hurt, spite, or anger anybody. Much less me,” Mal impressed upon the other girl, and Evie nodded against her shoulder, pressing her cold, wet nose against Mal’s neck.

“I love you, Evie,” Mal expressed wholeheartedly, and she could hear Evie’s tail thumping hard against the floor.

“I love you, too, Mal,” she reciprocated, every word caressed in that sweet way that only Evie could accomplish.

“And you’re a good, good, _good_ girl,” Mal praised, and Evie’s tail moved even swifter against the floor.

They sat there in silence for several moments, holding each other tightly and fully as they simply enjoyed one another’s presence.

“Do you think I should tell you that I ate a hamburger from a garbage can?” Evie finally questioned, her voice thick, and Mal just snorted, honestly not able to care any less about where Evie’s tongue had been. Evie could have dunked her tongue in a septic tank, and Mal would still be ecstatic to have her back.

“Do you think I should tell you that Ben used his toothbrush after your toilet mouth?” Mal joked, half-serious.

“He didn’t!” Evie cried, and Mal laughed healingly, scratching the fur covering Evie’s back fondly before finally pulling away. Mal leant back and shifted so that she was on her knees, wiping her nose with a sleeve.

“I think that this belongs to you,” Mal informed her, and Evie smiled as Mal withdrew Evie’s collar from her back pocket. Evie stood still and proudly with her front leg drawn to her chest as Mal clipped the collar around her neck firmly. Mal fingered the dog tag gently, reading the fine print stating the dog’s- no, her best friend’s name. She then procured the leash from her front pocket.

Mal gently clipped it on and stroked the sides of Evie’s neck with both of her hands. Evie just stared at her, sisterly love practically glowing in her eyes.

“You ready to blow this popsicle stand?” Mal asked fondly, and Evie smiled up at her sweetly.

“Well, does an ogre like cheese puffs?”

They both just laughed, leaving that lonely little cell far behind them as they both got away from that positively dreadful place.


	14. All is Found

Mal and Evie were both seated on Mal’s new couch, relaxed there together as they tried to make it further through _Jumaji_. However, they weren’t doing much better than last time, because they both were nearly asleep as Evie rested her head on Mal’s stomach. Mal was gently stroking Evie’s ears, rubbing them softly as she barely kept awake.

Evie’s eyes were shut in pure contentment, enjoying her best friend’s touch as she relaxed.

Evie was so unbelievably glad to be back with her sister. Her tail had been in a constant, never-ending wag since they had left the shelter. Ben and Uma were there to greet her and Mal as soon as she walked out of the back.

Ben had let her lick his face- Mal and Evie shared a conspiratorial wink at the fact that Evie had done it purely of her own will and not of the dog’s, a sort of inside joke between them after the admission about the garbage hamburger- and Uma had knelt down and actually hugged Evie before attempting to blow it off with something about not being outdone by Ben.

And it had been so nice to see everyone that evening when Jay’s Tourney game was over and Audrey, Jane, and Carlos were back from school. Harry and Gil had finally come over, but only after Uma had given Harry a stern fussing.

Everyone was so absolutely relieved to see her safe and at home. Jane had immediately hugged her in a suffocating grip, almost falling into tears at seeing her back. Audrey had fussed over her for a long time, and she had even giggled when the dog’s impulses slipped through and caused her to lightly lick the tip of Audrey’s nose. Jay and Carlos had scratched and petted her for a long time. Harry and Gil had even offered some pets for her.

Eventually, everyone, even Ben, had left Mal and Evie to spend some quality time together. And they had taken full advantage of the situation, immediately relaxing on that silly new couch.

All was well in their world at this moment.

Except for the fact that neither Jane, Carlos, nor Audrey had managed to find the spell book anywhere at the school. But that was the least of the two’s worries as they were just enjoying one another’s company.

However, a sudden knock interrupted them quickly. Mal jumped a bit beneath Evie and Evie raised her head up to look at the door, her brow furrowing curiously. Mal shared a glance with the dog, and she scooted out from underneath Evie as she got up.

Mal headed for the door, opening it and her eyes widening as she beheld the last person she expected to see at her front door.

It was Celia Facilier, standing there before her with an exceedingly guilty expression on her face as she looked at the faerie.

“Celia? What brings you here?” Mal questioned, totally confused as she looked at the girl. Evie raised up on the couch with increased interest, attempting to see past Mal to the adolescent in question. However, she couldn’t manage to spot her, so she lowered her head a bit, resting it on the arm of the couch.

“I’m sorry, Mal. I just can’t keep it anymore,” Celia informed the young Queen as she procured a particular item from behind her back, holding it out to Mal carefully.

It was the spell book in all of its gorgeous, magical glory. It shone there in the light, and Mal could’ve sworn there was more glitter to it than the last time she had laid eyes on it. Of course, it could’ve been the general air of hope in things.

“I promise that I won’t touch this ever again. Trust me, I have definitely learned _my_ lesson,” Celia swore firmly, waving her hand in a negating motion, and Mal was drawn from her stupor somewhat as she took it from the Facilier.

Evie tilted her head, trying to decipher what was going on.

“Well, thank you, Celia,” Mal finally mustered.

“Sure. Just make sure that thing gets put away before something else happens.”

“Wait… Something else? What’s happened?” Mal questioned and Celia just offered her a huge, very guilty grin, almost running in her haste to escape from the situation.

Mal blinked, looking down at the book in her hand. After a moment, she shook her head, huffing in slight humor as she resisted the urge to laugh fully. Mal flipped through the spell book quickly, finding the reverse spell for Evie’s current condition.

She then turned back to face Evie, the spell book behind her back as she looked at her sister.

Evie furrowed her brow confusedly, trying to understand what had just happened between the faerie and the Facilier. Their speech was so vague that she didn’t have any idea what was going on or that Mal had the spell book on her person at all.

“What did Celia need?” Evie questioned, and Mal shrugged with a sigh.

“Oh, nothing really. Just coming by.”

“Y’know, E, I’ve been so terrified,” Mal started, trying to resist the urge to grin as she gestured behind her back, muttering the spell underneath her breath as Evie grew fully concerned with the statement, focusing on her side of the story.

“Yeah, me, too. I’ve been scared to death that I’ll never turn back to a human again,” Evie explained, keeping her eyes on Mal as she lounged on the couch.

Mal watched as Evie slowly transformed back into a human, her fur shrinking back as her features grew smaller and more human-like. Sprigs of hair started to grow from her head, and they swirled down in Evie’s usual gorgeous spirals. Instead of fur covering her body, there was skin, and it seemed to somehow spawn back the clothing that she had before her transformation.

However, Mal couldn’t help but be disappointed at the fact that Evie’s broken paw had carried over into this form as well, and her hand was wrapped in gauze now.

Mal almost wanted to laugh at the fact that Evie was sitting there curled up in the same position as she was when she was a dog, her chin resting on the arm of the couch.

“I’ve really hated being a dog, M, I’ll be totally honest. Toilet water, garbage cans, _pooper scoopers_. Gosh, this has been killing me,” Evie explained, completely unaware of her current form as a human.

“But there has been some good points to it,” Evie added thoughtfully, doing that little pinch of her eyebrows that always signified her state of deep thought. Mal almost wanted to hug her and shake her into realizing her current state, but she decided she’d let the joke last a little longer.

“Yeah, what’s that?” Mal asked as she surreptitiously sat the spell book behind the pot of flowers on the small table nearby the door.

“Well, I really liked going to Walmart with you and Uma and being a guide dog. And tackling Carlos was kind of funny. Except I wasn’t really aware of it when it happened,” Evie laughed, her lips curling into that beautiful smile for which she was so infamous. Mal smiled as she ambled a bit closer to the very-human Evie sitting before her.

“Yeah,” Mal trailed off, just taking in Evie’s appearance as she enjoyed seeing Evie back as a human.

“Come here, E,” Mal requested, and Evie complied easily as she raised up a bit on the couch. Mal snorted slightly as she watched Evie crawl down from the sofa, her hand drawn to her chest as she knelt down on all fours.

“What is it? Haven’t you ever seen a dog with a broken paw before?” Evie questioned with an eyebrow raise, and Mal giggled a bit.

“Don’t worry. It’s nothing. It’s just… I’ve never seen such a human-looking dog,” Mal informed her, and Evie just looked at her as if she had lost her mind.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about. There is nothing human about this Labrador,” Evie humorlessly chuckled, pursing her lips in that infamous slight pout that so signified her displeasure.

Mal finally couldn’t handle it anymore, and burst out laughing, unable to resist finding enjoyment in Evie’s unawareness any longer. Evie just sat there staring at the faerie as she tried to understand what could possibly be causing these hysterics.

“Am I missing something?” Evie asked, and Mal just laughed harder. Evie tilted her head to the side, as Mal tried to overcome her mirth.

Eventually, Mal finally pulled herself together, and Evie crawled over to her feet carefully. She brought her good hand up to Mal’s knee as if it were a paw.

“I think that you need a whole lot of help,” Evie informed her, and Mal knelt down to Evie’s level, sobering completely as she smiled lovingly at the girl before her.

“Evie I love you so much, but you are so clueless,” Mal informed her, pressing her forehead against Evie’s and squishing her nose against the taller girl’s.

Evie furrowed her brow in confusion, and Mal laced her fingers in Evie’s good hand, pulling their conjoined digits up beside them so Evie could see. The bluenette looked over at their two hands, taking it in slowly.

Then a ridiculously large grin came onto her face as she lit up like a Christmas tree. She shot up from Mal, standing on her two legs shakily as she looked down her body. Mal looked up at her from her position on the floor.

The squeal started to build slowly in Evie’s throat before she suddenly let loose with it loudly, hopping up and down in her purely adorable excitement. Mal stood up quickly as Evie jumped in circles, her squeal dying down in favor of thrilled laughter.

Mal stood there for a moment, smiling at Evie, and as soon as Evie realized that Mal was just standing there, she rushed over with her tongue extended a bit. Mal’s eyes went wide in horror as she caught Evie by the shoulders.

“Hold on!” Mal cried, and Evie paused, confused until she realized exactly what was going on with her mouth.

“Oh! Sorry… It’s habit now, I guess,” Evie explained herself, a blush coloring her cheeks. Evie then grabbed Mal’s face in her hand, kissing her sister’s cheeks in turn before hugging her tightly. Mal returned it fully, resting her head against Evie’s shoulder lovingly. Mal quietly reveled in the fact that Evie was finally taller than her again, and Mal was finally able to hide from the world in the slightly older girl’s arms once again.

“How am I back?” Evie questioned somewhere nearby Mal’s ear as she held Mal tightly. Mal shook her head with a chuckle.

“Celia brought you the spell book, didn’t she?” Evie asked her accusingly, but her tone was much too happy to communicate any frustration effectively. Mal rolled her eyes and snuggled into Evie’s hold more closely. Honestly, Evie was so quick on the uptake of some things, but on others, she was completely thick-headed.

“What gave you that idea?” Mal inquired playfully.

“Something about it hiding over here nearby the vase,” Evie informed her, and Mal just grinned, nestling her face into Evie’s shoulder.

“I’ll never tell,” Mal joked, and Evie laughed sweetly.

They both sat there in silence for a little while longer, just holding each other tightly, until Evie spoke up.

“Hey, Mal, what am I going to do without the use of both hands?” Evie questioned worriedly after a moment. “I’m going to be so bored if I can’t sew.”

“Well, I’ve got an idea,” Mal informed her as she looked past Evie’s shoulder just slightly.

“What is it?”

“You _could_ vacuum my new couch and get the dog hairs off of it…”


End file.
